Fragments of Sorrow
by Mary Haze
Summary: Hmm a summary... kay! Alex gets sent into Wonderland and wants to return home. She seeks help from Alice who tells her that a vial can return her home. One problem though is that she was never given a vial. So how will she return home? And will she be able to make it back before her sister passes away? Read and find out! :3 Rating is T for now, but might change to M later.
1. 1: A New World

**Hello wonderful people! ^^~**

**Ahh so before I begin the story, I want to say some things to whoever was curious enough to check this story out. 3**

**First off, I've read the Heart no kuni no Alice manga and some of the Clover one shots.**

**But a problem is that I haven't finished the game x_x (Is currently playing it. Will play Joker after.)(Clover is too glitchy T_T)**

**Sooo yeah… I'll do my best with the characters! *determined* But if I fail, please don't form a mob and bring along those pitchforks and torches… ^^;;**

**If anyone has any questions, or if you want to point out any mistakes just message away, and I will respond to all of them. X3**

**Ahh and A/N = Author's Note**

**PS: I decided to have Alice live with the Mafia Family~**

**Okay, that's all~ Now time to begin! =3**

**-Character Summary-**

**Name: Alex Garsel**

**Real Age: 21 (looks 16)**

**Dream/Wonderland Age: 18**

**Hair: Long, black**

**Eyes: Red (Left eye is partially blind)**

**Height: 157**

**Blood Type: O (Don't know who'd want to know though. XD)**

* * *

**-Chapter One-**

**-A NEW WORLD-**

I hugged the ragged blanket tightly against me while sitting in the alley. Snow continued to fall from the sky. The winter was harsh this year. Even my red, over-sized jacket and this old blanket combined couldn't keep me warm. I decided on heading to an abandoned church I found the other day. Maybe staying there would keep me from turning into a popsicle.

As I walked through the streets of London, I tried to avoid eye contact and kept my head low. The bangs of my long, black hair were grown out long enough to cover my eyes entirely. Red eyes were abnormal… They brought too much attention… It saddened me.

It didn't take long for me to reach the church. As I stood in front of the alter, I looked up at the large cross in front of me. The wood was rotting away and looked as though it would fall at any given moment. I sighed and spun around.

"Okay Alex, that's enough! I'm not just some poor, miserable and unfortunate kid." I slapped my cheeks and took a deep breath. Since night would come soon, I decided to take a nap. Luckily the church was quite warm.

* * *

"Alex…" a voice said.

"Alex… It's time," said the voice again.

I awoke in an awful mood.

"What is it uncle?" I asked while trying to pull the covers over my head.

"It's time for you to get out of bed," Uncle Aswal said while yanking the blanket away and tossing it aside.

"Today's the day of the coronation. You don't want to miss your big day, now do you?"

I unwillingly sat up and stretched.

"Fine, you win."

"Good, now get yourself dressed. Breakfast will be served shortly," the old man said with a smile and left.

That guy was always such a cheery fellow, but he could have at least let me sleep more. Though according to my uncle, if you couldn't show up on time then you shouldn't show up at all. Lame rule that was.

I rubbed my eyes and got up to get dressed. My vision was always blurry for the first few minutes after waking up. It didn't help that I was also partially blind in my left eye. Though for some reason I couldn't think of the reason why.

I decided to wear my red dress and black stockings. It was the dress my uncle gave me last year for my birthday, and I still treasured it. He was the only person who was ever nice to me and treated me like a human. I smiled and decided it was time to head for breakfast.

As I walked towards the door, the ground suddenly felt as though it disappeared from below me. My eyes widened as I began to fall. I whined as it looked as though I were falling into an abyss. I was never much of a screamer… (A/N: Don't say anything… XD) Bet I would pay for that someday.

I soon saw a light appear from below. I shut my eyes and hugged myself tight as I went through, preparing myself for what was to come. Opening my right eye, I saw myself falling towards a tall tower.

"Wasn't prepared for this," I said, filled with terror as my eye twitched.

As I neared a splattering death, I noticed a man in a red overcoat standing on the highest balcony of the tower.

"What the heck!"

"HEEEEY!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. The man looked up at me. "MOVE IT!"

I closed my eyes and prepared myself for the hopefully painless death that awaited me. Instead I felt myself end up in a pair of arms. My eyes stayed shut. No splatter. No hitting concrete ground. No pain. I heard laughter.

"I never thought I'd be lucky enough to meet another outsider. And you fell from the sky too." He laughed again. I slowly opened my eyes and looked up to see the face of the man who saved me.

"I… Fell from the sky."

"Hmm? That's right. Are you alright?" the man asked.

"I fell from the sky… from a hole to some weird black place from so high up, and you caught me. You caught me, and we're both completely alright."

"Haha that's right." Time seemed to freeze for me.

"YOU IDIOT! NONE OF THIS MAKES SENSE!" I complained.

"I don't see how." The guy still had that care-free smile on his face.

"Actually what doesn't make sense is why you told me to move when you were falling. Haha normally one would call for help."

"Well if I was going to die, I didn't want to bring someone down with me," I argued.

"It wouldn't be knightly of me to not save a girl in distress." The man laughed again.

"You're a knight?" I asked feeling puzzled.

"That's right. I'm Ace, the knight of hearts." I stared with wide eyes. I had never seen one before. I didn't even think they were still around. Ace put me down, then I straightened out my dress.

"And who might you be?"

"Ahh well I'm Alex Garsel." I then looked around at the scenery before me.

"Where am I?" I asked in awe. Everything looked so beautiful.

"You really are an outsider. This is Wonderland in the Country of Hearts, and we're currently at the clock tower."

"I see." I leaned over the edge and looked below. "We're really high up," I said nervously then backed away. I never did like heights, but I also didn't like to reveal my weaknesses.

"Can you help me out of this tower?" I asked as politely as I could, wanting to get down as soon as possible.

"Sure. I'm on my way out as well," Ace said then laughed. "Follow me. Haha!" I looked at him questioningly as I followed.

"You're a cheerful fellow," I commented.

"Hmm I guess so."

* * *

I followed the guy for what seemed like a long time. We had passed through many hallways, many doors, and up and down a lot of stairs before I started to get bored and irritated.

"Hey Ace, are we almost there yet?" I asked while trying to act calmly.

"Hmm I wonder…"

"You wonder?" My brow twitched. Ace looked around for a while before making his decision.

"This way!" he said excitedly then walked onwards. I followed while not feeling too happy with my guide.

After many more hallways, doors, and stairs, I was desperately at the point of trying really hard not to snap and whack the guy.

"Are we almost there!" I asked, this time not even trying to hide my irritation.

"This way," he said then lead us out onto a balcony. I walked forward and looked around. This place was… familiar… wait… I ran quickly to the door, not wanting to be near the edge.

"THIS IS WHERE WE FIRST STARTED!" I shouted as I spun around and glared at the knight.

"I ASKED TO GET OUT OF THE TOWER, NOT GO IN CIRCLES AND END UP BACK TOP!"

Ace looked around then laughed.

"I guess you're right. Haha!"

"Don't ha ha me! What are you? Directionally challenged or something!"

Ace thought to himself for a moment.

"Yeah, I'm always getting lost. Haha!"

Despite my fear of heights, I was ready to push this dumb knight off the balcony. He could have said that he didn't know where to go! The nerve of this guy.

"What's with all this noise?" I heard someone ask from behind. I turned around to see a man with long hair and glasses, not looking too pleased with us.

"Hey Julius. We were trying to leave the tower," Ace said cheerfully. Julius sighed and rubbed his brow.

"I'll show you the way out," he said then lead the way.

This Julius guy looked like he had more brains than Ace, but he also looked like the type that hates to be bothered.

"So who is this girl?" asked Julius.

"This is Alex Garsel. She came falling from the sky. Haha!"

"So you're an outsider?"

"Yeah, I guess? I don't know. First I'm in my room, and then this hole just pops out of nowhere. I fall through this weird black place and ended up here." Something then just hit me. WHERE AM I! Where is this Wonderland!

I started hitting my forehead and calling myself stupid over and over. Why the heck do I never think about the important stuff until later?

"Are you alright…?" Julius asked.

Well these guys probably thought I was insane by now. Ace laughed then patted my head.

"You're definitely a strange girl," he said. I sighed in frustration.

"Do you have a vial?" Julius asked. I looked at him questioningly.

"A vial?"

"Yes. The last outsider who came here had a vial. I think the vial might be a way for you to return home if that's what you want."

"But I never got this vial thing." I checked my pockets. There was nothing in them. "How do I get it?"

"Hmm I don't know."

"Hey maybe Alice would know. This girl probably comes from the same world as her," said Ace.

"That's a good idea. Do you think you can take this girl to the Hatter Mansion then?" Julius then paused to think. "Without getting her lost?" he then added.

"Sure thing."

"No way! What if he takes me off to some deserted inhabitable place of no return!" I complained. Julius sighed in irritation. He then opened the door and lead us out. We were finally on the ground. I sighed in relief.

"Listen carefully. The Hatter Mansion is in that direction," Julius said as he pointed towards one area. "If you keep going straight, you won't get lost. Now I have work to do."

"Thanks Julius," Ace said while going in the opposite direction.

"THAT'S THE WRONG WAY!" I shouted in irritation.

"The Hatter Mansion is in that direction," Julius said, showing Ace once more.

"Now leave me alone. I'm already behind schedule," Julius said. He then walked back into the tower and slammed the door.

"He seems like a workaholic," I said, staring at the door.

"Haha! Yeah, that Julius is always busy. He fixes the clocks around here."

"He fixes clocks? Sounds boring."

"Well for Julius, this is an important job. So let's go see Alice," Ace said while heading in the opposite direction. Again.

"THAT'S THE WRONG WAY!"

* * *

**And that's all for chapter one. Please R&R. All questions and any other stuff said are welcome. x3**

**Ahh and so nobody gets confused, as you guys know that the only way to go between worlds is if you're asleep. So Alex went to sleep dreaming about her uncle and the day of her coronation, then she was sent to Wonderland by going through Nightmare's world. Just saying this so people don't get confused about how she's first in an abandoned church then wakes up in her home. XD**


	2. 2: Similarities and Meeting Alice

**Hello everyone~ I'm back with chapter 2. ^^~**

**First off, I am going to ask you all a question. I will post the question at the end of this chapter too so people don't forget about it. XD**

**Question: Who do you guys want Alice to pair up with?**

**Whatever character gets the most votes will win Alice's affection. 3 You can choose any character from Heart, Clover, and Joker.**

**Ahh so I'm trying to keep all chapters at 7 pages minimum, so will never post less but might/most likely will post more if that makes sense. Sometimes I suck at explaining what I want. XDD**

**If I do post a chapter less than 7 pages, then it'll probably be because I'm busy and my head's about to explode. 3**

**Anyways just to let everyone know, I do plan on making this story go from Heart all the way to Joker. *Trying to get glitchy clover to work boo boo***

***New Note* Finally got to play Clover a few days ago, but now it's being stupid with its glitchiness and is freezing at a certain scene to make it impossible to finish…. WHHHHHHHHHY?**

**I might make heart, clover, and joker separated into different stories, buuuut then I might combine them all into one story instead. Still deciding. It all depends on how many chapters I end up having. XD**

**Also, I'm drawing a picture of Alex. X3**

**I might add a few of the heart no kuni no alice characters in the drawing lolz~**

**OMG I typed too much *facepalm***

**Anyways enough of my blabbering~ On with the story~ *winks***

* * *

**-Chapter Two-**

**-Similarities and Meeting Alice-**

* * *

I hugged myself as everything became dark. I was confused as to why it would become dark so quickly without warning.

"Looks like it's time to set up camp," Ace said cheerfully.

"Camp?"

"Yeah, it's dangerous for a child to be traveling at night."

"I'm not a child, but more importantly what's going on?" I asked Ace and froze as I saw him setting up a tent. "And where did that tent come from?" I asked, feeling very surprised and confused.

"Haha! I always carry a tent with me for when it gets dark. And day, evening, and night change randomly."

Why would it change randomly? That made no sense. And wait...

"EXACTLY WHERE DOES THAT TENT POP UP FROM?" There's no way he could carry something that big without anyone noticing. There's no logic!

Sadly, Ace ignored the question as he continued with putting up the tent. I sighed and decided to help. Maybe not knowing was best for me.

* * *

Evening came immediately after dark. I started to grow impatient after a long time of traveling.

"Ace, how long until we get there?" I asked with a frown.

"We're here," Ace said with a smile as he pointed towards a rather large mansion in the distance. It's amazing how he didn't get us lost. But then again, we did go through two nights, three evenings, and two mornings...

As we neared the gate, I noticed two boys guarding it and not looking very happy with their job. One of the boys had something that caught my interest. Becoming too excited, I bolted towards him.

"You there," I said with a smile.

"Is she an intruder brother?" the boy in blue asked.

"She's with that knight brother," the other responded.

They held out their weapons towards me. I stopped in my tracks and took a step back.

"W-wait. I'm sorry. I don't mean any harm," I said apologetically.

"What do you want?" asked the boy in red.

"Your eyes."

They both gave me questioning looks.

"You want my eyes?"

I guess I should have said more…

"N-no! Your eyes are red! They're like mine," I tried to explain. I pulled up my bangs to show them my red eyes.

"I never thought I'd ever meet someone like me. And you're a twin like me too." I felt like hugging the boy but refrained from doing so. After all, their weapons were still aimed at me.

"So you like my eyes?" the boy in red asked with a grin.

"What about mine?" asked the other as they lowered their weapons. I nodded in response.

"Your blue eyes are really cute," I said. I was mainly just excited to meet someone like me.

"I like her," said the boy in blue.

"Me too."

"I'm Tweedle Dee."

"And I'm Tweedle Dum."

"We're the gatekeepers of this place. And who are you?" asked Dee.

"I'm Alex Garsel."

"What brings you here?" asked Dum.

"We're here to see Alice," Ace said. "You're so mean Alex. You completely forgot I was here. Plus I have red eyes too. Hahaha!" he then added.

"Sorry," I said sheepishly. "I didn't mean to… Oh wait. You do have red eyes!" I looked at his eyes in awe. Ace laughed at my reaction.

"What do you want with Big Sis?" asked the twins as their weapons were now aimed at Ace. Ace drew his sword.

"It's to help this kid. She needs to get back home, and we need Alice to help her."

"How do we know you're not just trying to take Big Sis for yourself?" asked a serious Dee.

"Well if you're not going to let us pass, then I guess I'll have no choice but to force my way in," Ace said with a smile then laughed.

Something about the way he said that sent a shiver up my spine. Were these guys actually going to fight? They wouldn't, right?

"H-hey, let's put down the weapons here. Ace and I really do just want to talk to Alice," I said, hoping they would do just that. Dee then aimed his weapon at me which caused me to take another step back.

"As much as we like you, you do have to pay the price for trespassing," said Dee.

I couldn't believe this. Were they really not going to listen? Ace then laughed and readied his sword.

"I think you should get behind me, Alex. I wouldn't want to accidentally kill you with my sword."

"Exactly HOW would you accidentally kill me?" I asked in a panic.

"Hold it!" we then heard someone shout from beyond the gate. "Dee! Dum! What are you two doing?"

We all turned to see a girl in a blue dress running towards us. A man with black, spikey hair and a top hat followed from behind.

"That knight an' this girl wants to take you away Big Sis," said Dum.

"We're not trying to take her away!" I shouted.

"Hey Alice! We were just having some fun," Ace then said.

"WHO'S HAVING FUN YOU DUMB KNIGHT?" I was getting fed up with this.

"Who's this young lady?" asked the man who stood by Alice. He seemed like a calm and reasonable guy.

"I'm Alex Garsel, and I heard that Alice can help me."

"Help you with what?" asked Alice.

* * *

After some time, I had the whole situation explained.

"So the young lady wasn't given a vial?"

"No… Not that I know of," I responded while looking at the ground.

"There must be a mistake. Since you were sent to this world, you should have been given one. Maybe Nightmare would know," Alice said thoughtfully.

"Nightmare? Who's that?"

"He's a nightmare who shows up in people's dreams. It's the only way for you to contact him."

"Someone who can only be contacted in a dream?" I sighed in disappointment. My chances of returning to my own world were dimming down to nothing.

"Don't be depressed," Alice said while trying to cheer me up. "Can she stay with us Blood? At least until we can help her find a way back home?"

"Of course. A room will be prepared for her immediately," said Blood.

"I am Blood Dupre, boss of the Hatter Mansion. It's a pleasure to meet you," he said with a smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too," I said with a forced smile. This man seemed nice, but the idea that I'd be stuck in this world wasn't making me feel good.

"Come in," Alice said with a smile.

"Well I guess I'll head back to Julius now," Ace said as he waved good-bye.

"Wait," I said, stopping him from leaving.

"What is it?"

"Thank you very much. Let's meet again sometime." The guy was a clueless moron, but he was also the first friend I made in this world.

"Hahaha! Sure," he said with a smile then walked off.

"Wait Ace! The Clock Tower is in the other direction," Alice pointed out. I sighed in disbelief. That guy really was hopeless.

"So you'll be living with us from now on huh?" asked Dee.

"I guess so."

"You said you're an outsider right? That's so cool," said Dum.

"An' you can play with us," Dee then added.

"Sounds like fun," I said nervously. These two did just try to kill me and Ace earlier, so I wasn't planning to trust them just yet.

"I don't want you kids to be playing any dangerous games with her," Alice said with a stern voice.

"Aww but why Big Sis?" asked Dee.

"Because you might get her killed. If you're good boys, you won't do that."

What Alice said made me freeze in my tracks. _'get her killed…'_ Those few words trailing off in my mind made me doubt the boys even more.

"We're good boys," Dum said as he went to hug Alice with Dee. She sighed in disbelief.

"We'll see."

* * *

I stood in the room that was prepared for me during my stay here. Everything was beautifully decorated. I laid on the bed and stared at the ceiling.

"Aura," I whispered. "I wish I could tell you about everything."

Aura was my twin sister. Everything about us was similar except for our hair and eye colors. Aura had beautiful dark blonde hair and violet eyes. Even though our appearances were alike, I always thought of her to be much more beautiful. She was unlucky enough to be born with an incurable disease. My uncle told me she'd die at an early age… Not something I wanted to hear really… Aura's pale skin and frailness added to her beauty though. I always wondered if it were possible for me to become that beautiful. But then again, I know that's impossible.

I sighed and turned to the side. My uncle had told me a few days earlier that on the day of the coronation, Aura's pain would end. He must have found a cure. And I had to be stupid enough to fall down a dumb hole. Now I couldn't help Aura or find out whether or not uncle really did have a cure for her.

Would she be alright?

Would she get worse?

Will uncle help her?

Will my absence worry them?

I heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," I said as I sat up.

"Are you finding everything to your liking?" asked the woman who walked in. I suddenly froze when looking at her. She seemed to be… lacking… in the facial area.

Now what would one do in a situation like this? You're looking at something abnormal that creeps you out. How to react. How to react. How to react. How to- Oh! Should I scream? Uncle always did say that one should scream when in a terrifying situation.

"Uhh miss?"

But I'm not really terrified. I'm just sort of creeped out.

"Are you… alright?"

Ahh but she looks really nice. And concerned? I think? No, screaming would be bad.

"Miss?" the woman asked again while walking towards me.

Think of something, stupid.

"Miss?" the woman asked again, this time standing right in front of me.

"Hello there," I said while smiling at the faceless woman. I wanted to punch myself in the face for stupidity. The woman looked at me oddly.

"Are you finding everything to your liking?"

"Yes. Thanks for asking."

The woman smiled.

"Lunch will be served shortly. Shall I show you the way?"

Food sounded nice, but I just wasn't in the mood for it.

"No thank you. I think I'll pass. Thanks for asking though."

The woman looked at me with concern.

"It's not healthy for the young lady to skip a meal. You really should eat."

I smiled at her warmly. I really was an idiot for even thinking about screaming before. This woman was too nice. All I had to do was get used to the fact that she was missing a face…

"Thank you, but I'm really tired. I'll sleep instead."

The woman gave up and frowned.

"Okay… Rest well," she said then left.

I sighed and laid back on the bed, pulling the covers over me. It'd be nice if this were just a dream. Maybe it was a dream? Maybe if I slept, I'd wake up in my own room. Then I could help Aura.

* * *

**Aaaaand cut! That's all for chapter 2. *is already working on 3. XDD***

**Ahh so I really hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I feel like there's something I reaaaally wanted to say, but now I can't think of it… That happens to me a lot x_x Oh well~ XD**

**Ahh right, the question.**

**Question: Who do you guys want Alice to pair up with? Anyone can vote. X3 You may choose any characters from Heart, Clover, and Joker.**

**Thank you all for reading!**

***edit***

**Oh gawd now I remember! I keep forgetting about the disclaimer *HUGE FACEPALM* I'll remember to add it at the beginning of chapter 3. x_x**

**I do not own Heart, Clover, and Joker no Kuni no Alice! Sadly **

**pfft, idk why I'm posting this at the end. XD**


	3. 3: Annoying Twins

**Hiii~ Guess who's back?**

**So what shall happen to dear Alex in this chapter?**

**Read and find out! :3**

**Alice: Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice do not belong to Mary Haze.**

**Me: Thank you Alice for the lovely disclaimer! X3 For once it's not forgotten!**

**Alex: Do I have to be in the story? I don't like where things are going.**

**Me: Yes you do, so shut up.**

**Alex: *sighs* This isn't good.**

* * *

**-Chapter Three-**

**-Annoying Twins-**

* * *

_Two little girls sat together in a dark alley, sharing a thin blanket while snow fell harshly. It was one of the coldest winters yet. The girl with black hair hugged her sister tightly._

_"Don't worry. I'll keep you warm," she said while trembling._

_"We're going to die. Aren't we?" asked the girl with a weak voice._

_"Of course not. We're just going to sleep."_

_Of course they were going to die. The air was too cold for anyone to survive long while outside. It especially didn't help that they were dressed lightly._

_A man walked by and stopped in front of the two._

_"What a rare sight," he said then smiled._

_The girl with black hair looked up weakly at the man with empty eyes. He held out his hand towards her._

_"If you come with me, you'll never have to suffer again."_

_Trusting a stranger was dangerous, but the girl had no choice but to accept. It was either die or accept the man's invitation._

_But something felt wrong. The world suddenly began to turn dark. The girl with black hair looked around with fear creeping in. What happened? Where was she? Where was the man? Her sister?_

_Suddenly a sound was heard from behind. The girl slowly turned around to see what had caused it. Her eyes widened in horror at the display before her. Her sister laid motionless on the ground, completely covered in blood. The girl walked slowly towards her sister. When standing in front of her, she was positive that the girl was dead. Tears filled in her eyes._

_"NOOO!"_

I sat up quickly in cold sweat. I took deep breaths and placed my right hand over my forehead as I tried to calm down.

"Why am I having this dream now?"

* * *

**-3****rd**** POV-**

* * *

Alice knocked on the door to Alex's room. Silence.

"Alex? I'm coming in," she said while opening the door. When she walked in, she looked around and saw that nobody was there. The bed was empty, and there was no place the girl could have crawled under.

"Now where did she go?" Alice had decided to visit Alex and persuade her to eat. She had already gone through four time changes without a single bite. As she looked around, she noticed that the window was open. Alice walked towards it and looked out.

"Did she really?"

* * *

**-Alex POV-**

* * *

I walked towards the gate of the Hatter Mansion. I was becoming too restless earlier and decided to go out and explore. I would have gone out the door, but I didn't feel like calling anyone for help or getting lost. So in the end, I decided to go out the window. That way, I could find my way out and in no problem. For now. Of course I wasn't going to just make the window my main entrance and exit forever.

"Hey, it's sister," said Dee as he came to hug me.

"Hi sister!" Dum greeted as he hugged me as well. I could hear the clash of sharp objects behind me. Of course they'd hug me with they're dangerous weapons.

"Get those away!" I said in a panick.

"Oh sorry," said Dum.

"We'll just turn them into guns. See? Safe."

I stared at Dee in disbelief. Exactly how did they turn those into guns? And how were guns safer?

I sighed. Well at least guns couldn't cut you. I continued on my way out. Dee and Dum followed close behind.

"Where are you going sister?" asked Dee.

"I'm going to explore. It's my first time in this place, and I want to check things out.

"Ohh~ Can we come?"

"If you want to."

"Yay~" the twins said excitedly.

"Where do you want to head to first sister?" asked Dum.

"Why do you keep calling me sister? We're not family or anything."

"Course we're family," Dee said excitedly. "Everyone in the mafia is family."

"An' that makes you our sister."

"Wait, MAFIA?" I asked in disbelief as I spun around to face the two. "You guys are all part of a mafia?"

The boys nodded a yes with huge smiles on their faces.

"An' you're with us now."

Well I wasn't feeling too pleased right now. Out of all the places Alice could have been found in, she just had to be living with the mafia. And now I was staying with them too. Kill joy. Ahh but these people were nice. But still… the mafia? Ehh but they seemed harmless. But then again…

"So where to sister?" asked Dee, popping me out of my thoughts.

"Hmm well what places are there?"

"There's always the Amusement Park!"

"An' the Castle of Hearts!"

"Amusement Park and Castle huh? Sounds like fun! But what about that tower?" I asked curiously. I wanted to thank the guy who lived there for helping me out. Even if it wasn't much.

"The Clock Tower? You really wanna go there first?" asked Dee.

"Mhm. I want to do something there."

"Hmm."

"Hmm."

I gave the boys a questioning look. It was pretty obvious that they didn't want to go there first. It didn't take long before Dee looked like he made up his mind.

"How about we go play at the Castle of Hearts?"

"Yeah! Let's go play there first," Dum said cheerfully.

"I don't want to play. I want to sight-see," I complained.

"Ah but it's impossible for us to go to all places at once. We should pick one place and play."

"Agreed brother. Since we won't have time to visit all the places, we should just choose one. Let's have fun~"

"It's really impossible to go to all three?"

"Yeah, impossible," answered Dum.

I frowned at this.

"Well then if that's the case, then why not go to the Clock Tower today and then play at any other place tomorrow?"

"Nope."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

These boys were starting to get on my nerves. I should have just declined when they asked to come!

I crossed my arms and pouted.

"Hmph! Well then, I'll just go to the Clock Tower by myself. You boys just do whatever you please."

Dee and Dum looked at each other then looked back at me with smirks.

"Do you even know how to get to the Clock Tower?" Dee asked, smirk still planted on his face.

I didn't like where this was going.

"N-no. But I can find out!"

"Oh no brother~ It looks like sister doesn't know the way," said Dum.

"Mhm. An' if she goes all by herself, who knows what will happen to her."

I raised a brow.

"What's going to happen?" I asked while feeling displeased.

"Anything. There's wild animals an' people who could kill sister."

"K-kill me! ?" My eye twitched. I really didn't like this. "Y-you're bluffing!"

"No sister~ Brother is right~ It gets even more dangerous at night."

"Oh~ That's right brother. The animals are more fierce at night."

"You're lying! You're just trying to scare me!"

Yeah that's right. These kids are just bluffing. There's nothing scary out here. I mean I was with Ace the whole time and didn't see a thing. Ahh but Ace did mention it being dangerous at night. B-but it could be anything! Whatever he meant!

"Oh no sister. We wouldn't do that~"

"If you don't believe us, then why don't you find out," said a confident Dee.

I'm not scared.

"I-I will! Just you wait and see!"

I'm not scared.

I spun on my heels and faced the forest before me.

I'm. Not. Scared.

"Well?" asked Dee.

I took a deep breath then marched forward. There was absolutely nothing to be afraid of.

My body froze as rustling could be heard.

"Geh!" said a voice from the left. I turned quickly to see a blur falling towards me.

I'M SCAAAARED! !

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! ! !"

**CRASH!**

* * *

**-3****rd**** POV-**

* * *

Dee and Dum stared at the scene before them. They started to laugh uncontrollably.

"This is too good brother."

"Agreed."

They continued to laugh.

The "thing" that happened to fall on top of Alex was none other than Ace. He sat up while rubbing the back of his head. This just wasn't his day.

"Is anyone hurt?" asked a worried Alice as she hurried over here. She had been concerned about Alex and decided to search for her.

"Everything's fine Big Sis," said Dee. He and Dum had finally stopped laughing.

"But sister doesn't look well," Dum said as he pointed to a knocked out Alex.

Alice gasped in disbelief at the scene.

"Ace! What on earth are you doing! ?" she asked, panicking as she saw Ace on top of the knocked out Alex in an awkward position.

"I'm trying to get through this unlucky day," he answered then sighed. He looked down and finally noticed that there was someone below him.

"Oh so that's what I fell on. Hahaha~"

"DON'T LAUGH!" shouted Alice in frustration. "Get off of her now Ace. We need to bring her back."

"But we wanna play with her," said Dum.

"No! How can you play with her if she's unconscious?"

"We'll just wake her up."

"No! Alex needs to get home immediately or she'll become ill."

"Sister's sick?" asked a worried Dee.

Alice was trying hard to not explode with anger.

"No, but she will be if we don't get her back. Ace, can you please carry her back?"

"Sure!" the knight said cheerfully.

The group headed back to the Hatter Mansion with an Alex who was probably now afraid of forests.

* * *

**Thank you to everyone who read this chapter~ x3**

**Ahh well Alex will finally be doing some sight-seeing in the next chapter. 3**

**Aaaand voting for who Alice will be paired with is still going on. Don't be shy you lovely people. *winks***


	4. 4: A Promising Deal

**Hey there! Here's chapter 4. :3**

**Well now it looks like the twins are going to be used for a while. *yawns* *5am* XD**

**Ahh so thank you readers and reviewers! I love you all so much. XD**

**Please enjoy the chapter~~**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice. If I did, I'd add in more evilness. *evil laughter***

* * *

**-Chapter Four-**

**-A Promising Deal-**

* * *

I awoke in a foul mood. For some strange reason my body was aching terribly. While sitting up, I started to remember the events that took place before I fell unconscious. Leaving through the window. Finding out about the mafia. Being slammed into by something red and scary. Yes. I had learned my lesson. Do not fall victim to the demonic twins.

I looked out the window to see that it was dark. If I left now, it would either be morning or evening later on. Perfect. I'd figure it all out myself.

Leaping out the window, I headed towards the gate.

Once reaching my destination, I crept slowly alongside the wall and looked around carefully.

Not a demonic child in sight.

I ran past the gate, feeling relieved. Finally I could explore. Finally I could- Forest…

I froze in my tracks as I stared at the forest before me. It looked too dark and spooky right about now. An owl hooted which caused me to jump.

"This is just great. Those stupid twins gave me a new phobia," I whispered to myself as an eye twitched. Just what was I supposed to do now?

I took a few steps back then felt myself bump into something.

"What are you doing sister?" asked a familiar voice. I gulped and turned my head slowly to see none other than Dee standing there with a grin on his face.

"None of your business," I answered with a forced smile.

"You weren't trying to run away were you?"

"No… I just wanted some fresh air."

"Mhm~"

For some reason I could tell he wasn't convinced. Oh how I wanted to punch him.

"Did you find sister?" asked Dum while running towards us.

"Yes brother, she's here," Dee said merrily.

"Great! C'mon sister. Big Sis wants you to eat."

"Not hungry."

"But you have to eat," said Dum.

"No I don't. There's no law."

"But you'll die."

"I'M NOT GOING TO DIE!" I balled up a fist in anger.

"Hmm."

"Hmm."

"Please sister… We don't want you to die," said Dum with big red orbs and a frown.

"Won't you eat sister?" asked Dee with tears in his eyes.

They were obviously acting. But… But why do they have to look so cute! ? My anger melted away instantly. Normally I wouldn't fall so easily, but to see a person with red eyes tear up only made me think of the hardships in my past life.

I sighed in defeat.

"Okay… I'll come," I said with a frown.

"Yay~" said the twins merrily as they each took a hand and pulled me back towards the mansion. On our way there, I couldn't help but glance at Dum. I wondered if he ever had any hardships. Or maybe this was something that only happened in my world.

* * *

"We brought her Big Sis~" said the twins. They ran to their seats quickly to eat their meals.

"Good to see you young miss," greeted Blood.

"I'm glad to see you," said a relieved Alice. She looked like a really kind-hearted person. Kind of like Aura.

"Now come sit down and eat," she said while motioning me to a seat across a man I haven't yet met. As I sat down, I couldn't help but notice the furry long ears attached to his head.

"Hey there! So you're the new outsider," said the man in a cheery voice. "My name's Elliot March. What's yours?"

"Alex Garsel. It's a pleasure to meet you." I smiled as he went back to stuffing his face with what appeared to be carrot cake. I continued to stare at the ears.

"Are those real?" I asked out of curiosity.

"Hm?"

"Ears," I said while pointing at them. "Are they real?"

"Of course they're real. What kind of question is that?"

"My mistake," I said while laughing nervously. It's obviously normal for grown men to have animal ears. Though having ears like that. I wonder.

"So are you a rabbit?"

"N-no! I'm no rabbit. Can't you tell?" Elliot seemed to take the question really personally.

"Well I was asking because I couldn't." I sighed.

"I'm a dog," Elliot said proudly. I stared at the man in confusion.

"I… see…" Exactly what kind of dog had long ears like that?

"No you're a stupid chicken rabbit," said the twins.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"You heard us you dumb chicken rabbit!"

"YOU DAMN LITTLE BRATS!"

I ate my food silently while trying to pay no attention to the twins and mister rabbit/dog/whatever he was argue with one another. Soon gunshots and blades clashing were heard which caused me to jump.

"Ah, tea is always best when served at night," Blood said while sipping his tea. He was completely ignoring the scene between the twins and Elliot. Alice for one looked like she was getting fed up with it.

"That's enough," she finally said. "Stop arguing and eat your food before it gets cold."

"Okay Big Sis," the twins said cheerfully and ran to the table. Dee sat to her left while Dum sat to her right, both hugging her dearly. Elliot cursed under his breath while walking back to his seat.

I couldn't help but watch the twins as I started to discover something interesting. They looked really attached to Alice. Actually… Come to think of it, when Ace and I first arrived here, they looked as if they'd rather die than hand her over. Could it be that they were possibly in love with her? Or maybe they just treasured her too much as a sister. But still…

I continued to watch the twins snuggle a poor Alice who only wanted to eat her meal in peace. This gave me a good idea.

After the meal, I waited a while before going after the twins.

"Hey wait," I said, running up to them after I spotted them in the hallway. They gave me questioning looks.

"What is it sister?" asked Dum.

"I have a question," I said then looked around. Nobody here.

"What's the question?"

I was starting to feel stupid for doing this. What if I was wrong? I'd be a laughing stock for sure… But I couldn't back out now. I had to be confident.

"Are you guys… like… you know…" Yeah this was definitely becoming harder to ask.

Dee gave me a bored expression.

"Are you going to ask or not?"

"Ugh, are you guys in love with Alice?"

"Yeah we love her."

"We really, really love Big Sis."

I felt like collapsing after hearing them confess such a thing so easily. Too easily!

"For real?"

"Mhm~"

"Yeah~"

"Wow."

"What is it sister?"

"Well it's just that I'm surprised. You just admitted your love to someone and you don't look shy or embarrassed or anything."

"Why do we need to be shy? We love Big Sis. That's it," said Dee.

"An' we're gonna make her love us too~" Dum said excitedly.

After regaining my composure, I thought to myself. Yeah, maybe this could work out after all.

"Hey you want to make a deal?" I asked.

"What kind of deal?" asked Dee while raising a brow in suspicion.

"Something that could work for all of us. So how about this. If you guys agree to act as my guides in this world, then I promise I will do everything in my power to help you guys win Alice's heart."

It looked like the plan was working. The twins looked surprised and excited to hear this.

"You'll really help us sister?" asked Dum.

"Yep. I give you my word."

"How do we know you're not going to cheat us in the end?" asked Dee.

"Because it's a promise. I'm strictly against breaking any promises I make. Even if it killed me, I'd never break one." That was the truth. I had always taken all my promises seriously. Which sometimes made life a whole lot harder for me.

"Hmm~ Oh well. It's a deal," Dee finally agreed. Both boys grinned then gave me a hug.

"We're keeping you to your word sister."

"Don't let us down."

"R-right…" I laughed nervously. I really didn't want these two little demons hugging me right now. Oh well. At least I could finally go where I wanted to starting tomorrow.

* * *

After a forced breakfast from Alice, I left the Hatter Mansion with very happy twins.

"So where to first sister?" asked Dee.

"Hmm how about the Clock Tower?"

"Why do you wanna go to such a boring place?" asked Dum.

"Because I want to say thanks, and there's something I want to check out?"

"Oh?"

"And what are you checking out?"

"I want to know if my vial is there."

I remembered Alice telling me about a vial. How it was the only way back home, and I was supposed to have one. But for some unknown reasons I didn't. There was a chance the vial was dropped at the tower then.

"Oh yeah! You never got one," said Dum.

"That's right. When I first arrived in this world, I ended up at the Clock Tower. The vial has to be there." I'd find it no matter what.

"But is that mortician gonna let us in?"

"Mortician? Is that what Julius is?"

"Yeah. Sister's not very smart."

"Shut it! He'll definitely let us inside," I said while pouting.

***SLAM***

"And don't come back! I have too much work to do," said an angry Julius after slamming the door shut on us. HOW RUDE!

"Knew it wouldn't work."

"SHUT UP DEE!"

I started banging on the door repeatedly.

"I just want to find my vial! Please!"

Julius opened the door and looked furiously angry.

"I'm busy right now. Come back another time."

"No! I promise not to bother you!"

"You're bothering me now! Besides, it's not you I'm worried about. It's them!" Julius said while pointing at the twins. I looked back at them and agreed that those two did seem like a huge menace.

"They don't have to come in."

"HEY!" shouted the twins.

"That's mean sister."

"Come back another time," Julius said again.

"If you don't let us in now, I'll scream at the top of my lungs. I swear I won't stop. Even after I run out of breath, I'll just scream some more."

Julius and I glared at each other for quite some time. After a while he sighed and gave in.

"Alright. You may come in. Just don't bother me." With that said, he walked away and went back to his room to work. I sighed in relief.

"We're coming in," demanded the twins.

"Yeah, yeah whatever."

I started searching from where I was saved by Ace. I checked every corner, behind and under every object I came across, and places high and low. Nothing.

***twitch***

"So uhm… You boys aren't going to help me are you?" I asked while on the floor. This entire time all Dee and Dum ever did was stare at me with bored expressions.

"Looks like too much work," Dee said flatly with Dum agreeing. How was it that they were perfect angels around Alice and treated me like crud?

After hours of searching, I gave up. The vial was obviously not here. I sat down in dismay, thinking of where it could possibly be.

"Well it's obviously not here," I said to the boys.

"So what now?" asked Dum.

"Well we've been here a long time, so I guess we can head back…"

The twins agreed, and we headed back to the Hatter Mansion together.

"Well that was boring," said Dee.

"Yeah, no fun."

"Sorry to ruin your day," I said in a low voice. I didn't really feel like picking a fight now.

Dee and Dum looked back at me then slowed down their pace for me to catch up.

"Why do you need the vial?"

"Yeah, what's wrong with staying here?"

"My sister… I'm worried. She's had this illness since birth. Well before I arrived here, my uncle was telling me about a way to fix her. I'm thinking he found a cure, but I'm not sure."

"Well if she's cured, then you got nothing to worry about."

"Yeah, so forget about that vial."

"I can't," I argued. "What if there really wasn't a cure all along? I'm telling you that I think he might've found one."

"If there's no cure, then wouldn't it be better if she died?" asked Dee.

"Mhm~"

"Are you boys crazy! ?" I shouted in disbelief. I couldn't believe they asked that.

"Why would we be crazy? If she died, then there'd be nothing to worry about."

I wanted to retort something back, but the word death kept repeating itself over and over in my mind. Something about that word.

Suddenly I was remembering the dream. The dream of the dead girl laying on the ground covered in blood. A warm liquid was felt in my hands. As I looked down, I could see them covered in blood.

Why?

I shut my eyes tight as the world turned black around me. The voices of the twins calling my name slowly faded away.

"Don't remember," said an unknown voice. "Don't worry. Everything is alright."

I opened my eyes to see a man with silver hair standing before me.

"Who are you?"

* * *

**Thank you all for reading!**

**This ended up being longer than the others. Yay~**

**Take care everyone~ And voting is still in process.**


	5. 5: Amusement Park

**Aaaaand I finally updated! Woohoo! Sorry for being so late… T_T**

**School and activities have dragged me down badly. x_x**

**Ahh but I ended up making this my longest chapter~ *Is very happy* *Is starting on next chapter while I still have time***

**Well I hope you all enjoy this~ ^^~**

**Ah I almost forgot the disclaimer again. *fails***

**Disclaimer: I do not own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice, and I wish I did. *pouts***

* * *

**- CHAPTER FIVE -**

**- AMUSEMENT PARK -**

* * *

"Who are you?" I asked while taking a step back in fright. For unknown reasons, I was in a strange, dark world. It looked like the world I fell through when coming to the Country of Hearts. And now a man with silver hair floated before me.

"There's no need to be afraid, Alex. I'm Nightmare, the incubus," the man said with a smile.

I froze in shock. I didn't believe it.

"What is it?"

The real deal…

Nightmare stared at me with a puzzled look.

I spun around and took off running.

"W-wait," Nightmare said while flying after me. "Stop running."

"THERE'S NO WAY I'M GOING TO HAVE SEX WITH YOU, YOU HORRIBLE CREATURE! ! !"

"Why on earth would we have sex?" a surprised Nightmare asked while catching up to me and grabbing my arm.

"Duh, because you're an incubus!" I glared at the man.

"How does being an incubus have anything to do with sex?"

"What are you stupid? An incubus is a demon who has sexual intercourses with sleeping women!" I pushed Nightmare away and took a few steps back. He stared at me for a long time in shock. He started to cough up a good amount of blood.

"Oh my gawd," I whispered in horror.

"I'm not that kind of incubus… When… I say I'm an incubus, I mean that I'm just the embodiment of bad dreams!" he argued then coughed up more blood.

"D-d-d-doctor! You need to see a doctor," I said while panicking.

"I refuse. I hate doctors."

"But there's seriously something wrong with you."

"I'm fine," Nightmare said stubbornly.

"Oh riiight, of course you're fine. It's absolutely NORMAL to cough up blood," I said sarcastically.

"That's right."

I was at a loss for words. Oh well, if this guy wanted to die, it was fine with me. But before he decided to grow wings or meet that demon down below, I was going to find out how to get the heck out of here.

"That's rude!" Nightmare said in irritation.

"What is?" I asked while raising a brow.

"I'm not dying! And would you really not care?"

Now I was getting really confused.

"Wha- I never said you were dying."

"You thought it!"

I remained silent while trying to process what the incubus just said. Thought it? Thought it…

"You read minds! ?" I asked in disbelief.

"That's right," Nightmare said while wiping the blood from his mouth.

"So then…"

"Don't worry. You're only dreaming now. When you wake up, you should be at the Hatter Residence."

"And I'm not a pervert! You can stop thinking that," Nightmare quickly added.

"Then stop reading my mind you dream rapist."

"I'm not a dream rapist!"

The guy really did seem harmless. Actually he seemed like the annoying type one could just stomp on.

"Well as much as you dislike me, I am here to help you," Nightmare said calmly.

"Help me how?" I asked while tilting my head slightly when looking at the incubus.

"Unfortunately we're out of time. You need to wake up now."

"Hey wait. What do you mean out of time? You said you're here to help me."

"You've been asleep for too long. I'll explain when we meet again."

Everything became a blur and darkened. I could feel a welcoming warmth engulf me.

I opened my eyes slowly to find myself in my room of the Hatter Mansion just like the incubus said. After some time, I tried lifting myself up which was unusually difficult to do. I thought back to what Alice told me when we first met. I remember her saying that this Nightmare guy was supposed to be helpful. Was he helpful? Heck no!

I changed out of the purple nightgown that I was wearing and into my clothes, praying that Alice was the one who put it on me… I decided to explore this large mansion, since I was still clueless on where things were.

* * *

Many sounds and music could be heard all around us. Screams could be heard from here and there. Apparently Alice decided to take me to the Amusement Park today, which brought me loads of excitement. I had read quite a few times in books just how exciting they were.

Two hands grabbed me from behind and dragged me back a few steps.

"Don't forget your promise, sister," said an amused Dee.

"So what first?" asked Dum with a huge grin on his face.

I guess I might have forgot to mention that these boys came along with us… I sighed and brushed their hands off my shoulders.

"What are you three doing?" asked Alice from ahead.

"We'll only be a sec. Go on without us," I said while giving her a forced smile. She shrugged and went on ahead.

"Okay, so today we'll begin Mission One: Affection!" I said while looking back at the twins with a smirk.

"Affection? What kind of a mission name is that?" asked Dee.

"It's my mission! I can name it whatever I want," I argued.

"So what do we do, sister?" asked Dum.

"I'm glad you asked, Dum," I said while smiling at the boy.

"The point of today's mission is to figure out how much love Alice has for you two and to hopefully deepen it if only by a little. I will be in charge of figuring out her current feelings, and it'll be up to you boys to get her to fall for you more."

"An' how do we do that?"

"Simple. We'll have to focus on rides that give you a feel of love. Like aim for slow and romantic."

"Will this really work?" asked Dum.

"You'll see. I'm a master at love," I said while winking at the boy. To be honest though, I had never fallen in love or been in a relationship. I had only ever seen lovers walk by, watched romantic films, and read books with a little bit of romance here and there. But I would never tell them that.

"Anyways, you boys have been here right?"

"Yeah, we come here a lot to play," said Dee.

"Good, then you should know all the rides. Remember, just aim for slow and romantic looking. And save the Ferris Wheel for last."

"Why last?" asked the twins in unision.

"Because the FERRIS WHEEL has a very IMPORTANT meaning. It is a ride that should ALWAYS be saved for LAST. It is even more ROMANTIC at NIGHT, so if we get lucky and we get a time shift to night then that'd be awesome."

"Is that everything?" asked Dum. I thought to myself for a moment, making sure that I didn't forget anything.

"Yep," I said then ushered the boys onward. "You two will spend time with Alice first while I wander off elsewhere. Then we'll meet up to discuss your progress, switch for a while, meeting, then you can have her back."

Dee and Dum both stopped in their tracks.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Hmm well how do we know you won't get lost?" asked Dum.

"Yeah, like this morning," Dee added with a grin.

Oh gawd, I wanted to forget that… After leaving my room this morning, I ended up getting lost while trying to find my way out of the stupid mansion.

"I was only trying to find the entrance," I argued.

"So you thought you could find the entrance inside the public bath?" Dee asked. He and Dum then laughed.

Of course it was terribly embarrassing on my part. Blood and Elliot just happened to be in the baths at that time too. I really wanted to forget.

"Yeah that's real funny you two," I said sarcastically.

"Well I won't get lost this time. Now go!" I commanded.

"Yes~" the twins said merrily then ran off to meet up with Alice.

* * *

I decided to take a look around while the three spent their time "bonding". I was able to get in this time because Alice paid for me. The twins had their own money, and Alice had a free unlimited pass. The lucky girl… Maybe I should find a way to earn money too. Since I still didn't know the location of my vial, it'd probably be best to do so.

Looking at all the rides made me feel so excited. What to do first?

"Hello there little lady," I heard someone say from behind. I spun around to see a grown man in a yellow shirt holding a violin.

"Hello sir."

"You look different than the others. Are you an outsider?"

"Yeah. I'm Alex."

"Well I'll be. My second time seeing one. It's nice to meet you Alex," the man said while holding out his hand. I shook it and he smiled.

"The name's Gowland. You here on your own?"

"No, I came with others. One of them is also an outsider."

"You mean Alice? Had no idea she was here. I've been wantin' to show her one of my new songs."

"So you can play music?" I asked excitedly.

"I sure can. Would you like me to play a song?"

"Yes please!" Gowland seemed very pleased with my answer. I loved all types of music and couldn't help but wonder what this nice man would play.

* * *

**- A FEW MINUTES LATER… -**

* * *

No matter how hard I covered my ears, I couldn't save myself from the horrible sound. It was so horrifying, I wanted to run away and never come back.

"La la la~ La la la~ La~~~" **SCREEEEEEECH! ! !**

It felt like an eternity. Just when would it end! ? ! ?

"La la la la la~ La la~ La~~~"

My patience had grown VERY thin. I was about to explode on the man if he didn't stop. But then luck was on my side. A gunshot was heard which caused Gowland to stop. I sighed in relief.

"Hey pops! Trying to kill another one with that awful music of yours?" asked the one who saved me.

I looked to see a boy who looked very pink. Was he some kind of cosplayer? Pink hair, ears, and a tail with piercings. Maybe a punk cosplayer?

"Why you little… I was just at the good part too!" shouted an angry Gowland.

"None of that damn music of yours can be any good."

"What do you know ya damn brat!"

"And what's this anyways?" asked the boy while pointing at me.

"What do you mean what's this?" I asked. Something about this guy made me feel uncomfortable. But who in this world didn't?

"Oh her? She's an outsider. Like Alice," answered Gowland.

"No kidding. I never thought we'd be lucky enough to see two," the boy said with a smile.

My guess was that outsiders were rare judging by their excitement.

"I'm Boris," the boy said while examining me.

"Alex."

"So how about we have some fun?"

"Er, no thank-you," I said as politely as possible. I didn't really want to be around this guy. I mean he didn't seem like a bad guy or anything, but I felt somewhat strange and uncomfortable with him near. I felt like running away.

"What? Why?"

"I have things to do is all," I said which was somewhat true. I mean, I guess I did have to keep an eye out for Alice and the twins to make sure progress was going smoothly.

"Serves you right," said a pleased Gowland.

"Oh well. You're not that cute anyways," Boris said with a bored expression then took off.

"What the heck was that for?" I murmured to myself.

"Don't mind that stray. How about a free unlimited pass?" Gowland asked as he walked up to me.

"Really?" I asked in awe. What a generous old man!

"Of course! Here you go," Gowland said while handing me the pass.

"Thank-you~" I said, grinning while holding the pass.

"Would you like another song?"

"A-ah uhm s-sorry, but my friends are probably wondering where I am," I said nervously. "Next time, okay?"

"Sure thing," Gowland said with a grin. "Come and see me anytime."

I waved good-bye and ran off to find Alice and the twins. That old man played terrible music, but his jolliness really did make me think of Uncle Aswal.

* * *

I sat down at a table all alone after searching quite a while for the three. It really was stupid of me to not follow them… I was alone, and I had no money. I could just imagine Dee and Dum laughing and making fun of me now.

"Not fair," I murmured to myself while staring at the table.

"I thought you had something important to do," said a familiar voice. I looked up to see Boris sitting across from me.

"Why are you here?" I asked in surprise.

"I saw you sitting here by yourself, so I thought I'd pay you a visit. So what you said before was a lie then huh?" He was still looking at me with that bored expression of his.

"Not true. It's just that I can't find my objective," I said then sighed.

"What objective would that be?"

"A mission."

"Wait, what?" Boris looked confused.

"It's a mission for love! A promise to keep," I said feeling the determination build inside of me.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Boris asked then started to laugh.

"Hmm well do you promise to keep it a secret if I tell? It's very important you do," I said while eyeing the boy.

"Sure, just tell me."

It probably wouldn't hurt to tell just one person, right? And who knows, maybe he'd be able to help. So then I explained the whole situation to Boris.

"So you made a deal with the twins?" Boris asked with a grin.

"Yep. Now I have to keep my end of the bargain," I said with a smile.

"You look like you're having fun with this."

"Of course! Being in charge of having the love blossom between young people just makes my blood boil with excitement!" I stood up proudly and placed my hands on my chest.

"Haven't you ever wanted to know the feelings of true love?"

"Well I'm not exactly the type of cat who wants to get tied down. It's a cat thing," Boris said.

Ahh so that's what he was. That probably explained why he looked so cute. All animals were adorable after all. Even Elliot the rabbit/dog/whatever he was had adorable ears.

"Oh well~ You say that now, but you never know. One of these days, you'll discover that meaning of true love whether you want to or not."

"Not likely…"

"But then again, maybe there is someone I have an interest in," Boris said while moving close to me. "What if I also have the hots for Alice?" he asked, inches away.

What he said crushed me hard.

"A RIVAL!" I shouted while jumping back and pointing at the cat. My reaction seemed to catch Boris by surprise.

"That makes you the enemy," I said in dismay. This was not what I wanted. I had already failed by giving information to the enemy… AT THE VERY FIRST MISSION TOO!

I bonked my head lightly about three times as punishment while calling myself stupid.

Boris burst out into laughter.

"You're even weirder than Alice," he said then walked over to me.

"And don't worry. I said what if as in maybe. I don't have the hots for her, so don't beat yourself up over it," Boris added while patting my back.

"But I am interested," he then added. I gave him a worried look.

"Not romantically," he quickly added after that.

"Really?" I asked just to be sure. Boris nodded in agreement. That made me feel relieved.

"Well then thanks. I'm going to go find them now," I said then waved a good-bye at him.

"Hold it. Can I join you?" Boris asked while getting in my way.

"Don't you have something better to do?" I asked flatly.

"Ouch. Well I'm bored, and what you're doing seems like fun. Just let me tag along. I won't be in your way."

I thought to myself for a moment.

"You're not in love with Alice?"

"No."

"You won't tell anyone?"

"No way."

I smiled at the cat.

"Alright then. You can be my partner."

Something told me this was going to be fun.

* * *

**So now Alex has a partner in Operation: True Love! XD**

**And yes, all her plans will be called missions. xP**

**Votes on who Alice will pair up with are still up. So far, people have voted on Peter White, Blood Dupre, and The Bloody Twins.**

**For all who are kind enough to visit and/or read this story, love you all! x3**


	6. 6: A Romantic?

**And here's the next chapter. Yes, it came very quickly right after chapter 5, but it's pretty much just a continuation.**

**Hope you all enjoy~ And please R&R.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice.**

* * *

**-Chapter Six-**

**-A Romantic?-**

* * *

"So are you a romantic?" Boris asked as I spied on the twins. I nearly choked on his words.

"Of course not. Why on earth would you ask such a thing?"

"Well you were talking about true love and all that other crap."

"No… I only care about true love when it involves people I love."

"Nya, so you love the twins?" Boris asked while smirking.

"Heck no. First off, I say screw Dee. Secondly, I'm helping them because of Dum."

Boris looked surprised at my answer.

"But aren't they both similar?"

"I don't know why, but Dee irritates me more. Dum is like a companion to me though. And companions can't let each other down," I said with determination.

"And how are you companions?" Boris asked with a raised brow.

"Simple. We both have red eyes," I said cheerfully.

"_Like hell that makes any sense,"_ Boris thought to himself.

"I had no idea you had red eyes with your bangs covering them. Actually I don't have a clue what your face looks like. Why'd you grow them out so long?"

"Reasons that shall not be named. Ahh what are they doing?" I asked in a panic while trying to get near Alice and the twins without being noticed. Boris followed behind.

"What the heck is wrong with them?" I watched as the twins showed their display of affections towards Alice. They were all grabby with her. The poor girl didn't look like she could breathe.

"What's wrong?" Boris asked. He was becoming bored with the little game of stalking.

"Don't you see?" I asked the cat in irritation. "What kind of girl would like it if a moron or two just came up to her and started grabbing her in places? It'd piss her off."

"So what are you going to do?"

I looked around and found a rock on the ground.

"Operation: Knock Some Sense Into the Idiots," I said while picking up the rock.

"Wait, what are you-" Boris started to say but then stopped as he saw me throw the rock as hard as I could towards my target.

"OUCH!"

I froze in place. I definitely hit a target, but it wasn't the one I was aiming for… I seriously hoped that poor Alice wouldn't get a lump on her head.

"BIG SIS! ?"

"Why the hell did you do that?" Boris asked.

"I don't know," I said then ran far away from my targets. They'd kill me if they knew. Boris, not wanting to be blamed for the incident, ran as well.

* * *

"I wanted the rock to hit Dee," I said in disappointment. We were both sitting on a bench somewhere FAR from the twins.

"H-hey now… Dee was the farthest one away. Wouldn't it make more sense to aim for Dum?"

"But Dum's a companion," I argued.

"You and this companion crap. I don't get it," Boris said in irritation.

I pouted.

"Nya, so does that mean that knight and white rabbit are your companions too?

"Ace is definitely a companion as well," I said matter-of-factly. "And what white rabbit?"

"So you haven't met the Prime Minister yet."

I sighed in dismay. Why did I have to hit Alice?

"What if I gave her brain damage?" I whined.

"…I don't think she'd get brain damage from that."

I pulled out a small notepad then looked over some notes.

"What is that?" Boris asked while taking a glance.

"Reviewing my notes for their date."

"Man you really are a love freak," Boris said and sweat-dropped.

"Am not!"

"Then what's with the notes?"

"I'm not really an expert, okay? I've only ever done this once."

After everything Boris had seen so far, he honestly didn't doubt it.

"Why are you even getting involved?"

"Because of the deal. I can't go back on my word."

Boris stole the notes from me then took a look.

"H-hey!"

"What is this? Mission Affection?" Boris burst out into laughter. "What the hell is this?"

"Sh-shut it!" I shouted while taking back the notepad. "Like I said, I'm no expert."

"No kidding. Why are you even playing match-maker if you can't even do it right?"

"I can too do it right! The one and only time I ever did this ended up being a huge success might I add," I said in anger.

"I doubt it," Boris said, still laughing.

"Did too! It was with my sister. See I used to not know anything about love and didn't care."

"And it doesn't look like you know anything now." The cat had finally calmed down.

"Shut it! Like I was saying I used to not care, okay! ? Then one day my sister, Aura, came to me and talked about a boy she fell for. She asked for my help, and as her sister I couldn't let her down."

"I see. So what'd you do? Nya."

"I researched. Since I knew nothing about love, for several days I watched romance movies, read about romance, and paid close attention to couples and took tons and tons of notes."

"Wow."

"So then after my research, I came up with ways to pair my sister up with the boy she liked. And they finally ended up together."

"Nya, but how did you get them together?"

"Well... Let's say that the dress I got for my sister to wear was a bit too long for her, and then she ended up falling in a mud puddle… And well, the boy happened to be there at the time. She was so embarrassed, and he laughed so hard. Then they started dating after that."

"So in the end, it was your screw up that brought them together?" Boris asked then chuckled.

"It worked though."

"Yeah, but I feel that all the research you did was for nothing."

"Maybe it was, but it will help me a lot this time. I plan to use all my knowledge to bring those twins and Alice together."

"Riiight. Well here comes Dee and Dum now," Boris said while pointing at the twins.

I looked at the twins marching over then back at the spot where Boris was at only a few seconds ago. GONE! ?

"Sister, you'll never believe what happened," said Dum.

I had a feeling I did.

"Someone threw a rock at Big Sis," Dee said in anger.

Yep, I was right.

"They did? How awful," I said while trying my best not to act suspicious.

"If we ever find out who did it, that person will pay with their life."

"Poor Alice…" I said nervously. Yeah, this was definitely going to forever remain a secret.

"That's right!"

"Anyways, what now sister?"

I looked down at my notes and decided that maybe I needed to put more thought into these plans. Things like a candle-lit dinner in the Amusement Park and being personal butlers might not have been very good ideas. And maybe it was too early to kiss on the Ferris Wheel.

The time suddenly changed to night. The lights of the Amusement Park lit up beautifully.

"Sister?" Dum asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"How about you three ride on the Ferris Wheel?"

I noticed Alice running towards us.

"Alex, where have you been? I couldn't find you anywhere." Worrying over such a small thing. She really was like Aura.

"I'm fine. I was just exploring the place on my own."

"That's a relief."

"Hey Alice, how about we all ride on the Ferris Wheel?" I asked with a smile.

"Sure," she answered.

"Hey, I thought it was just going to be me, brother, and Alice," Dee whispered.

"It will." To be honest, I really was acting a bit ridiculous today. How embarrassing.

As our turn came up at the Ferris Wheel, I decided to feign sickness.

"Are you alright, Alex?" Alice asked, feeling worried.

"Y-yeah, just a stomach ache. You three go on ahead."

"Are you sure? We can all ride together another time?"

"No, I'm sure. You three have fun," I said with a smile.

"Okay…" Alice said as she walked in.

"Don't do anything stupid," I warned the twins as we separated.

* * *

As I sat on a bench and watched the Ferris Wheel, I couldn't help but think about the time when I played match-maker for Aura. The time she fell in the puddle, and her face became beat red with embarrassment. And the time when the boy laughed then asked her out. At that time, she had such a pure and beautiful smile. When I saw that smile, the happiness I felt was too great.

Boris was right. My plans for today were ridiculous. And I guess best that they weren't attempted. But at least I got to remember something good.

I really wanted to feel that happiness again. It probably sounded selfish, but it's what I really wanted at that moment. I would definitely make those annoying brothers and Alice happy.

"So they let you live?" Boris asked from behind.

"Don't you dare tell them that I threw the rock," I warned him.

"Is it really that fun playing stalker?" Boris asked with a grin on his face.

"I'm not playing stalker you freak." He really was getting on my nerves.

"Ouch. Exactly how am I the freak? You're the one who's covered your face with loads of hair. It's not cute."

"At least I didn't dye my hair pink," I argued.

"Mine's not dyed either. It's natural," Boris argued back.

"Sure it is. Anyways, don't make fun of my hair. I like it this way."

"You like looking like a freak?"

"Who's a freak! ?"

"What's so hard about tying it back?" Boris asked as he put his hand up to my face and pulled up my bangs.

"H-hey!" I looked up to see Boris with a stunned look on his face.

"Darn you," I said while slapping his hand away. I fixed up my hair, making sure the bangs covered my face perfectly.

"How rude. So maybe I am ugly, but you didn't have to look THAT surprised," I said in anger, looking back up at the Ferris Wheel.

"Not cute," Boris finally said after a long pause.

I sighed in defeat. Just how long would the ride last? I really wanted to go home right about now.

* * *

**And that's the end of this chapter. 3**

**Hope you all enjoyed~ 3**

**Now time for bed. *walks off***


	7. 7: Hatred

***Apologizes for the super long A/N… ^^;;***

**OMG YES, I'M ALIIIIVE! ! ! *blames school for my disappearance***

**And nearly had a heart attack a week ago when I found out about DIAMOND NO KUNI NO ALICE! ! !**

**And I died and went to heaven when I listened to the OPENING OF DNKNA YESTERDAY! KYAAAAAA! ! !**

**The final game for the Kuni no Alice series!**

**So in total there's Heart/Clover/Joker/ToyBox/Diamond (ToyBox is more of a fandisc though.). But I do wonder why QuinRose never made a Spade no kuni no Alice. Oh well, I'll live.**

**Anyways DNKNA will be released on December 20th. ^^~**

**And for those who don't know, the places of stay will be Train Station, Hatter Residence, Graveyard and Museum, and the Castle of Diamonds. Poor Vivaldi, Pierce, and Gowland get replaced by Crysta Snowpidgeon (White Queen), Sidney Black (Black Rabbit), and Gericho Bermuda (Dodo). (Cute lil' Pierce is goooone… T_T) Oh and Gray gets a new hawt and smexy hairstyle. XD**

**And idk what happened to Peter. He's supposed to be in this new game, but I have no idea what the heck QuinRose plans to do with him. I don't even see him on the cover.**

**Anyone who wants to see the opening for DNKNA but can't find it anywhere, just send me a msg. I'll let you see it. *winks***

**Well I've fangirled enough about this. Onwards to the story!**

**And hope you all enjoy!**

**Kyaaa~!**

***edit***

**Was about to forget the disclaimer again! *headdesk* x_x**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Joker/Clover/Heart no kuni no Alice, but if I did there'd be a spade!**

**Aaaand forgot to say this too and should have said so in other chapters if I didn't already... my bad... ^^;; Ahh but the words in italics are fragments of Alex's memories. The ones that were erased. xP**

**Kay now for the story. *dashes away***

* * *

**-Chapter Seven-**

**-Hatred-**

* * *

"You know when you tell people you're an incubus, they're all going to think you're gonna rape them," I said while sitting down comfortably in the dream world.

"Don't worry. I believe you're the only one," Nightmare said while twitching his brow.

I looked at my surroundings, a few questions popping into my head.

"Have you become accustomed to Wonderland?" Nightmare asked with a smile.

"Wonderland? I thought this was the Country of Hearts."

"Well you're not wrong. The Country of Hearts is located within Wonderland after all," Nightmare said matter-of-factly.

Now that I thought about it, it'd be silly to think a country made up an entire world. How embarrassing… But then again, why would this world be called Wonderland? Whoever came up with the name must've been high. It just sounded too childish to me.

"So have you?" Nightmare asked again, breaking me out of my thoughts.

"Well this world does have a way of defying the laws of physics," I said while remembering the time when I was first brought here, "And the inhabitants are quite interesting."

"Though some seem to be quite frightening at times," I said while thinking about the twins.

"But I don't really have time to think about getting accustomed. I do still have to return to my own world. There's my sister and uncle to think about."

"You should just stay here. Everything would work out better for you in the end."

"How would you know?" I asked with a raised brow.

"Nobody would discriminate you if you stayed in Wonderland. You wouldn't be treated poorly since everyone loves outsiders."

Everyone loves outsiders? The twins and Boris made me think otherwise.

A thought suddenly crossed my mind. It couldn't be coincidence could it?

* * *

I couldn't help but feel excited as Alice and I walked through the maze to reach the Castle of Hearts. I wanted to meet Ace, and because she didn't want me to come here alone with the twins, Alice tagged along as well. I was beginning to think there was an important reason why Alice was trying hard to keep me from playing with them. I couldn't help but wonder why.

"You look excited. Do you like mazes?" Alice asked me with a warm smile.

"Yes," I said with a huge grin on my face. "I've only ever seen pictures and read about them in books. The real thing is so amazing!"

"In books, huh?"

I waited for Alice to lead us to the next path. Mazes, puzzles, and mysteries were my most favorite things in the world.

"Yeah. Back at home, I'd always read books to pass the time, since I never go out."

"You must really love to read."

"Well books are interesting, but my main reason for reading is because there isn't anything else I can ever do."

I saw a purple butterfly flutter about and decided to follow it.

"Why don't you go out? You don't look like the type of person who prefers the indoors," asked a puzzled Alice.

"Hm?" I asked, not giving much thought in the question.

"W-what I mean is that you seem to be excited whenever you're moving about. I just can't see you as someone who always stays indoors," Alice said nervously.

Alice looked the other way, disappointed in her curiosity and what she thought was rude manners.

"Although you don't have to tell me… I was only curious, but it's not important to say."

Silence.

"Alex?"

Still no response.

"Alex, are you-" Alice stopped midway in her sentence as she turned around to see nobody there.

"VANISHED AGAIN!"

* * *

I followed the butterfly merrily through the maze, not paying any attention to where I was going.

After some time, the butterfly decided to fly high into the sky and off to who knows where. I couldn't help but stare at the beautiful sky and fluffy clouds that looked like cotton candy.

Now that I think about it, the weather in this world always seemed perfect. Always nice, and guys with bunny and cat ears and tails were thought of as normal. What if this was all a dream? But dreams don't really last for this long. Do they?

I sighed and looked around. Nobody in sight.

Closing my eyes, I brushed my bangs to the side with my left hand so my face could feel the gentle breeze. This felt good.

"Damn you're cute," said a voice from above.

My eyes widened in shock as I looked up to see Boris sitting on top of the hedge, looking down at me with a grin on his face.

I quickly let go of my bangs so they could cover up my face.

"What the heck are you doing here! ?" I asked, feeling embarrassed and frustrated.

Boris jumped down and landed in front of me.

"I came here to play."

"Then play," I said as I tried to walk past him. Boris blocked my path.

"Isn't it annoying?" the cat asked me with a frown.

"What is?"

"Having your face all covered up. You could easily be mistaken for a faceless."

"In all honesty, I don't give a damn."

"Ouch. Well I guess it's good enough if I alone get the privilege of seeing it," Boris said with a smile.

"Please, just go do whatever it is you were planning to do. I need to go," I said while ignoring what he said, this time turning my back to the cat and walking in the direction from which I came.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going to the Castle of Hearts to see Ace." I didn't even try to hide the irritation in my voice.

"You're going to see that knight? Do you have the hots for him?"

I stopped in my tracks and spun around, staring at Boris in shock.

"What on earth gave you that idea?"

"Well you came all the way over here from the Hatters just to see that guy, right?"

"Yeah, but still…"

"It's none of your concern," I said then walked off. Something started to bug me… a lot.

"That cold attitude of yours isn't cute."

"Didn't I tell you to leave me alone?"

"A feline!" shouted someone from behind.

Boris and I turned to see a beautiful young woman in red staring at the cat with joy in her eyes.

"Oh crap…" Boris said, not looking very pleased.

The woman then rushed to him and hugged him tightly.

"Oh we really adore felines," the woman said while still hugging the now suffocating cat.

"And I really adore you," I said cheerfully as I watched Boris suffer. This was a memorable moment indeed. Now only if he could just stop breathing.

"Oh? And who might you be?" asked the woman with a curious look.

"Oh I'm Alex Garsel. It's a pleasure to meet you," I said with a bow.

"Can't… breathe…" Boris' face was blue at this point.

"Are you a princess?" I asked the lady while studying her outfit. She wore a crown and was in an expensive-looking beautiful red dress.

"Oh my," the woman said with a smile as she chuckled and let go of the dying cat.

Boris fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"A tunnel… a light… I saw a light!"

"You are the second person to mistaken us for a princess."

"We are Vivaldi, the Queen of Hearts."

"A queen?" I asked in surprise. "That's amazing!"

Vivaldi laughed at my reaction.

"Are you an outsider?"

"Ahh yeah. I came here with Alice and…" My body froze as realization dawned on me.

"You came with Alice? Where is she?"

"I…"

Vivaldi stared at me curiously while Boris glared and tried to sneak away from the queen.

"I… I FORGOT ALICE! ! ! Oh my gawd, Alice!" I shouted as I ran around in circles. Realizing that this wasn't getting me anywhere, I spun around and ran back to find her.

Vivaldi and Boris stared at me in surprise.

"I'm soooorry!" I said while running off.

"Strange kid…" Boris said as they both sweat-dropped.

Vivaldi glanced at him.

"Would you like some cat food? We have plenty."

"No thanks," Boris said as he took that as a queue to scram and took off.

* * *

"Aliiiice! Aliiice!" I shouted as I ran around the maze to who knows where. I didn't pay attention to where I was walking to earlier, so I was now utterly lost. I was actually starting to feel a lot like Ace darn it!

I then spotted blue and red uniforms.

"The twins," I said while feeling slightly relieved. Maybe they could help me find her.

"Dee! Dum!" I shouted as I walked towards them.

"Oh it's sister," Dum said with a smile.

I then froze in my tracks as I noticed the scene before me. Dee and Dum were covered in blood, and dead bodies laid all around them.

"W-Wha…" My eyes widened in fear as the relief I felt earlier washed away. "What are you-"

"Oh we're just playin'" said a grinning Dee.

Playing?

It took me a while to process this in my mind. I was betting that this was the reason why Alice never wanted me to play with the twins.

I took a step back.

"What's wrong sister?" asked Dum.

"Ah…"

The twins stared at me, not understanding why I looked like I was about to explode.

"Ahh…"

I turned and high-tailed it out of there.

Murderers!

They're murderers! ! !

As I made a right turn, I ended up bumping into a red blur.

I fell to the ground, eyes shut tight.

"Alex?" asked a familiar voice.

I opened my eyes to see Ace staring down at me.

"Hahaha! What are you doing?" he asked.

I was about to respond, but then I saw his bloodied sword and two dead men on the ground.

I became as pale as a ghost as I quivered.

'_What are you doing, Alex?'_

Ace saw what I was looking at then laughed.

"It's just training."

'_What are you doing to Uncle Aswal?"_

I quickly got to my feet and ran. It really didn't matter to me where I ended up at this point. All I wanted to do right now was to get away from this nightmare.

I continued to run, finally making it out of the maze and into the forest. I still hadn't gotten over the stupid phobia the twins gave me, but compared to what I witnessed, going into the forest didn't matter at this point.

* * *

After what felt like a long time, I started to slow down my pace. I was exhausted. The dead bodies played repeatedly in my mind.

'_WHAT HAVE YOU DONE? !'_

What did I do?

Why was Aura screaming?

Why did she look so scared?

"_I hate you… I hate you…"_

"Hate?"

Oh… That's right.

Aura hates me.

Everyone hates me… That's why…

"I should just disappear…"

"What are you doing here?"

I looked up to see Julius with a bag of groceries.

"Are you alright?"

I stared at him blankly.

"You're crying," he said with a hint of irritation in his voice.

I touched my cheek, feeling the tears fall from my eyes. Since when did I start to cry?

"I'm okay," I said, eyes feeling heavy.

"You don't look okay to me," Julius said as he walked up to me.

'_I despise you, Alex.'_

I took a step back.

"Why do you hate me?" I asked, stopping Julius in his tracks.

"W-what?"

'_You took everything from me.'_

I covered my face with my hands and took a few more steps back.

"I have no reason to hate you. Why would you ask such a thing?"

"You don't have to lie!" I shouted in anger.

Startled, Julius took a step back.

"I'm not lying."

"What did I take from you? !"

"Alex, what's wrong?" Julius dropped his bag of groceries and walked up to me.

"WHAT DID I TAKE FROM YOU? !"

"ALEX!" Julius shouted, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me. "Have you gone mad?"

'_Alex, it's not your fault. I'm sorry…'_

"I'm sorry," I cried while hugging Julius tight. He froze, not knowing what to do.

"I'm so sorry. Please forgive me."

"Alex…"

"Don't hate me Aura," I said as I drifted off to sleep.

Julius sighed as he held on to me and patted my head.

**Meanwhile…**

A poor Alice was left in the maze searching frantically for the "missing" Alex.

* * *

**Aaaand done! Sorry again for the super late post… Evil school assignments… T_T**

**Poor Alex is gonna get thrown into the psycho ward. tsk tsk~ xP**

**Anyways, will try to update next chapter sooner. Please R, and have a wonderful time! *throws hearts out to all***


	8. 8: Discovery

**Hello everyone! I'm back from the grave~. XD**

**Ahh but really sorry I took forever to update... I will try to be quicker with my chapters. x_x;;**

**Anyways, now that Alex has met everyone (except for Peter, but he did appear in a chapter so works for me xP) I can finally get the gears moving and put the show on the road! :3**

**And don't let the mysteries blow your brains out~. We need to keep those brains together after all.**

**Thank you to those who reviewed! Reading your reviews made me really happy. *hearts***

**Please R&R. Love you all!**

**And HAH! Didn't forget you this time, now did I disclaimer! Mwuahaha!**

**Disclaimer: I do not, have not, and will not ever own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice.**

* * *

**-Chapter Eight-**

**-Discovery-**

* * *

***silence***

I sipped the cup of coffee as I watched Julius work diligently on the broken clock.

"…"

I had woken up earlier, confused as to what was going on. I was on a bed in a stranger's home, and I didn't know the reason why. And the confusion caused me to be stupid enough to roll off of the bed in fright which was quite high from the floor and land right on my head. That ended up getting me knocked out again…

So after waking up again, I was almost stupid enough to roll off again, but luckily Julius threatened to throw me out if I did...

***sweat-drops***

So then Julius explained why I was there, and here we are now.

"…"

"…"

***sips coffee***

"…"

Julius sighed, looking quite irritated.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Hm?"

"Why do you look so disgusted?"

"Ohh… It was that obvious?" I asked in surprise. Normally people wouldn't be able to see any expressions at all considering the fact that my face was covered with my bangs.

"Of course it was! If there's something on your mind then just spit it out," Julius said in that oh so familiar angry voice.

I sighed and looked down at the cup of coffee nervously.

"W-well… You see… I hate coffee."

Julius faltered.

"Why didn't you say something before! ?"

"Why are you yelling at me?" I asked while jumping back in fright.

"If you dislike coffee, then you should have refused earlier when I offered!"

"B-but it's bad manners to refuse," I whined.

"It's even worse when you have such repulsive expressions!"

"R-r-repulsive! ? ARE YOU CALLING ME UGLY?"

"No, but you look ridiculous! Next time if you dislike something, then refuse!"

"I look ridiculous? Exactly how am I ugly?" I cried.

"I NEVER SAID YOU WERE UGLY!"

"YOU SAID I'M REPULSIVE AND RIDICULOUS! ISN'T THAT THE SAME AS BEING REALLY UGLY?"

"I DIDN'T SAY YOU WERE UGLY! I'M TALKING ABOUT THAT HORRIBLE HABIT OF YOURS! NEVER ACCEPT SOMETHING IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT!"

"NOW I'M HORRIBLE? ? ? FORGET UGLY! ALL THAT MAKES ME SOUND HIDEOUS! YOU'RE WORSE THAN BORIS!"

"SINCE WHEN DID I CALL YOU UGLY! ?"

"YOU'RE A JERK!" I cried as I ran out of the room.

"HEY!" Julius shouted as he chased after me.

"What now?" I asked as I spun around and glared at him.

"Do you really want to go out looking like that?" he asked in a suddenly calm voice.

"Huh?" I asked while feeling confused.

I looked down at my clothes.

A bit dusty but normal.

Shoes?

Still there.

Was I dirty?

Nope. I looked clean enough.

Then maybe it's my-

"OH MY GAWD WHAT HAPPENED? ? ?"

* * *

**-3rd POV-**

* * *

"Alex! Alex, where are you?" Alice called out as she looked for the missing girl. She had to admit, that girl was very good at vanishing. The time of day had changed from Day to Noon, and Alice was becoming even more worried.

"Well if it isn't Alice my sweet!" came an annoyingly familiar voice.

"Oh no…"

Peter jumped from nowhere and hugged the poor girl.

"Is it I that you have come to meet?"

"Let go of me Peter!" said Alice as she tried to pry the white rabbit off of her.

"But I've missed you my darling and that is a fact. Now let our love blossom. It is time to act."

Peter hugged Alice even tighter which annoyed her even more.

"Peter… LET GO!" shouted Alice as she punched the rabbit with all her might. Poor Peter went flying into a bush.

"But Alice-"

"No buts! Peter. I'm looking for someone right now, so I can't be bothered by you," Alice said as she marched off. Peter escaped from the bush and followed.

"Who is this bxxxxxd you are trying to find? What right does he have to make you go through such trouble?" Peter asked with a serious expression.

Alice spun around and faced Peter with an irritated look.

"Peter… First off this he is a she. Secondly, she has not caused me trouble in any way. I'm just worried about her, and I don't want to leave her alone."

"Why worry over someone so insignificant? You should leave her be and come with me."

"I can't do that!"

"And why not?"

"Well…" Alice started to say as she thought of the reasons why. First off, Peter always brought the worst sides of her. He was seriously annoying. Secondly, Alex was like a lost animal in need of constant care. This little animal wouldn't eat if you didn't present the food before her, and going out with her felt like taking her on walks. Plus if you didn't watch her carefully, she would vanish…

"An animal…" Alice murmured to herself.

"What?" Peter asked with confusion in his eyes.

Alice sighed. Then a thought suddenly appeared. The one who brought her to Wonderland was Peter, right? So then Alex couldn't have come here on her own.

"Peter, there's something I need to ask you."

"Why not ask me at our love nest?"

"NO! We must find Alex!"

* * *

**-1st POV-**

* * *

"Oh my gawd, oh my gawd, oh my gawd, how did this happen?" I asked while walking in circles in Julius' room.

"I'm not sure. It was already there when I found you," Julius said while going back to work on the clocks.

I continued to walk nervously back and forth. This was really bad.

"M-m-maybe it isn't noticeable?" I asked while gnawing on my nails.

"I'm sure it wouldn't be noticeable for anyone with poor eyesight," Julius said as he sweat-dropped.

"And stop gnawing on your fingernails. That's another bad habit you need to get rid of."

"Daaaaaarn it," I said as my pace quickened. "What am I going to do?"

"Will it disappear?"

"W-well yeah… after some time. But it always varies a bit."

"…"

"…"

"Could you please settle down?"

I quickly headed to a chair near Julius' desk and sat down, trying my best to keep still.

"That wasn't there when we first met. What is it?"

"…"

"Of course if you don't feel comfortable talking about it, I'll understand."

"U-uhm…" I tried my best to calm down and stared at my hands. "I can tell you… if you… keep it a secret. You know… since you uhh… well… know about it now."

"I have no reason to tell anyone."

"So then you will keep it a secret?" I asked while looking up at Julius with curious eyes.

"Of course."

For some reason, I felt like I could trust this guy.

"Well you know I'm not from around here. And it's obvious to me that Alice and I don't come from the same world. At least I think we don't."

Julius nodded.

"Actually sometimes I feel like I'm dreaming. I might've actually even believed this to be a dream if Alice weren't here," I said then chuckled slightly.

Julius finished the clock and set it aside. I watched as he grabbed another clock then started to work on it.

"Julius, in my world, people with red eyes are hated. Actually we're hated so much that most of us are strangled and killed as babies."

Julius paused for a moment then looked up at me.

"Are you sure this is something you want to be telling me?"

I was taken aback by the gentleness of his voice. He sounded like he actually cared.

"It's okay. As long as you never tell anyone," I said with a small smile. "Plus now that you've seen this thing, I think I owe an explanation."

"But anyways, there is a reason why people with red eyes are hated. Why we have this thing on us. And well…"

* * *

**-3rd POV-**

* * *

"So you don't know anything about her?" asked Alice.

"Of course not! Alice my dear. You are my one and only love. I wish you'd understand my little dove," Peter said with perverted eyes that won him a glare from Alice.

"But weren't you the one who brought me to Wonderland?"

"Yes, I was."

"And you're honestly not responsible for Alex being here?"

"Dear Alice, are you jealous? My heart belongs to you. Not to some louse," Peter said with sad eyes.

"I'M NOT JEALOUS! Just… It's strange that Alex was brought here and doesn't even have a vial. And what I find stranger is that you're only stuck here if you drink from the vial, right?"

"That is correct."

"So why can't Alex go home?"

"Maybe she already drank from it?"

"What? But she said she didn't."

"What if she was given the vial in her sleep? You did say that she fell into Wonderland after waking up."

"That would make sense. But she doesn't have the vial with her."

"Then the vial must still be in possession of the one who made her drink from it. There's no rule that states the vial must be kept with you. An outsider can return to their world whenever they desire to. But if the outsider drinks from the vial, then returning to their world will be impossible without having it in their possession."

"So one of the role holders must have it," said Alice, realizing the situation.

* * *

**-1st POV-**

* * *

"Is this true?" Julius asked, staring at me in shock.

I nodded in response.

"Then why do you even want to go back? I normally wouldn't say this to anyone, but you're probably better off in this world," Julius said while trying to regain his composure.

I sighed and looked back down at my hands.

"You know why. I told you already."

"Do you really want to sacrifice everything for something so ridiculous?"

"I'm prepared. I know all of this is stupid, but I have the urge to go back. I'm not sure why, but I feel like I'm forgetting something important."

"What would that be?" Julius asked with a raised brow.

"I don't know… But if I don't go back, I feel like I'll always regret it."

* * *

**-3rd POV-**

* * *

It took Alice a good amount of time before she finally got rid of Peter. She had threatened to hate him forever if he didn't get back to work.

Alice sighed as she walked back to the Hatter Mansion. She was truly hoping that Alex somehow made her way back there since she wasn't at Heart Castle.

Going over the details in her head, she came to the conclusion that one of the role holders was definitely responsible for bringing Alex into this world. And like Peter, ***shivers*** that role holder might have feelings for her.

Alice decided that if she was to find the culprit, she'd have to keep a close eye on Alex and anyone who might show signs of interest in her. And she had a very good plan for how to narrow the suspects down.

* * *

**-1st POV-**

* * *

"Thanks for letting me use the bed, Julius," I said as I snuggled under the blankets.

"When Ace shows, I'll have him escort you back to the Hatter Residence," Julius said while going back to work.

I groaned in dismay.

"Does it have to be Ace? Can't you do it?"

"Nonsense. I have work to do! Now get some sleep."

"Fiiine."

I really didn't want to see Ace after seeing what he did to those poor people, but Julius promised me he wouldn't harm me. Apparently murder was a normal thing in Wonderland. It would have been nice if someone told me sooner.

The thought of what the twins did suddenly crossed my mind. If they knew that I was the one who whacked Alice at the Amusement Park, what would they have done to me…?

***Freezes***

I must NEVER let them know. I'd take it to my grave! And drag Boris down too if I had to!

* * *

**And that's the end of this chapter. T_T I'm so happy I finally managed to post it. I promise to not take forever to post the next one! I'm actually 1/3 done with it. Maybe I can get it done in less than a week to make up for the super long delay. Anyways, I hope everyone enjoyed. ^^~**

**Thank you to all who read and please review if you can. Bye bye~**


	9. 9: Mission Two and Deal with a Cat

**Hello all you wonderful people! Chapter 9 is up~. ^^~**

**Ahh this chapter's longer than I expected it to be. *feels accomplished* XD**

**Usually when I'm posting these chapters, I'm usually in a hurry, but today I actually have time to spare. :3**

**Soo I'm going to answer the reviews I should have answered before. Sorry for late replies. T_T**

**austriantatious****: Thank you sooo much for always reviewing! Reading them always makes me really happy. *hugs* Peter's probably the only role holder Alex hasn't met yet in Hearts, buuut I've already planned out how they'll meet in the future. XD**

**Hope Diamond****: Hurray! *high fives* XD Ahh I unfortunately can't tell you who Alex ends up with, but you get an idea on who her suitors might be. xP And sorry, but I can't tell you what the thing is yet. It'll spoil the story. And the suspense is cause I want to drive the readers crazy! Joking. :P But it gets you wondering~.**

**I am a stegosaurus asdf movie****: If you're still reading this, I have finally decided on Alice's suitor!**

**Everyone****: Thank you to all who helped me decide on who Alice pairs up with! Love you guys!**

***EDIT***

**I have to stop forgetting the disclaimer... *head desk***

**Disclaimer: I have not, does not, and will not ever own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice, but it'd be nice if I did~.**

* * *

**-Chapter Nine-**

**-Mission Two and Deal With a Cat-**

* * *

"Is there something wrong, Alex?" Nightmare asked as I stared blankly at my hands.

"Hmm? Maybe…"

Nightmare was starting to look annoyed.

"Don't tell me you learned how to block your thoughts?" he asked as a brow twitched.

"Maybe? I mean since you can already read my mind, I decided to just keep it blank. And when a thought starts to come, I'll just blurt it out loud," I said while looking at Nightmare with a bored expression.

"By the way, you look like someone who can easily be bullied," I added.

"AM NOT! I happen to be a very important role holder!"

"Riiight. Being a rapist is sooo outstanding."

"I'M NOT A RAPIST! Honestly, both you and Gray are so mean to me," Nightmare said with a humph and crossed his arms.

"Gray? Who's Gray?" I tilted my head to the side with curious eyes.

"Ehh? Well someone you don't need to worry about for now. You won't be meeting him anytime soon," Nightmare said while regaining his composure.

***Silence***

I went back to staring at my hands.

"What is it? Is there something wrong?"

"Well it's just that I feel like I'm missing something."

***Stares***

"O-okay there's something definitely wrong with you! You're acting strange!" Nightmare exclaimed as he waved a finger at me.

I placed a finger to my lips and looked up at Nightmare with innocent eyes.

"What do you mean strange?"

"Evil? Are you plotting something evil? !" Nightmare asked while panicking and coughing up blood.

"What the heck do you mean by evil? !" I asked, being snapped out of my earlier thoughts.

"Could it be that you've f-f-"

***Cough***

I watched in pity as the blood came pouring out of the incubus' mouth as he fell to his knees. He was just too pathetic to yell at when in such a terrible state.

"DON'T PITY ME! Are you planning to commit murder?"

***Freeze***

"Why the heck would I kill anyone?" I asked, not sure how Nightmare came up with something so absurd.

"…F-forget it…"

Nightmare tried his best to act clueless.

***Twitch***

FORGET PITY!

"WHO THE HECK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE ANYWAYS? ! LIKE I'M REALLY GOING TO KILL SOMEBODY! THE NERVE OF YOU!" I snarled while crushing Nightmare's face with the heel of my shoe.

"P-please… f-f-forgive… me…"

The incubus was suffering a lot.

Letting him go, I crossed my arms and glared at him.

"Don't ever suggest such a thing again!"

"Of course… I… I'm glad you think that way."

I started to feel uneasy. I'm not sure why, but the way he said that made me feel like there was something he wasn't telling me. Actually it was obvious since I met this incubus that he's been keeping things from me.

"If you don't mind me asking, what exactly is troubling you then?" Nightmare asked.

"It's nothing."

* * *

"Alex!" Alice shouted as she rushed towards me and gave me a hug. "I was so worried."

"I'll be off to the Castle of Hearts," Ace said as he waved good-bye.

Alice and I stared at him as he walked off in the wrong direction. Neither of us felt like telling him. After all, he'd find his way there. Eventually…

"So that's why you took forever to get back here," Alice said in a monotone voice.

"Exactly," I said, not feeling too pleased with the long "adventure" Ace and I had.

"So where's Dee and Dum?" I asked, wanting to share a new mission I came up with. It's true they were murderers, but Julius did say it was "normal". And it didn't look like those two would do anything to harm sweet Alice.

"They're in their room. But before you even think about seeing them, how about a meal?"

"But I'm not hungry."

"No buts. You really need to consider eating your meals," Alice said as she grabbed me by the arm and dragged me towards the mansion. It wasn't my fault I never felt hungry.

* * *

"So what's the next mission?" Dee asked while laying on his bed. Dum sat beside me, looking overjoyed.

I cleared my throat then stood tall on the bed, pointing at the boys. (Of course my shoes were off.)

"Today is Mission Two: RABU RABU DOKI!" I said with a smirk. I had thought carefully about this next one.

"Rav rav docki?" Dum asked, both twins feeling very confused.

"No, rabu rabu doki. Like love love heartbeat!" I said excitedly.

"We don't get it," said the twins as they frowned.

"Explain."

"Of course," I said while raising my index finger. "Maiden or male: One can never stop the quick beats of love when trapped in a dark room alone with the opposite sex."

"So you're locking us in a room?" Dum asked in confusion.

"Yeah, with Alice. This is guaranteed to work, trust me."

Dee and Dum looked at each other than back at me.

"We don't get it," they said in unison.

"Ahh but of course you wouldn't," I said as I sighed lovingly. "You are only pure little children after all~."

"Pure little children?" Dee asked. He and Dum burst out into laughter.

"Sister, just what part of us is pure?" Dum asked while holding on to his stomach.

I crossed my arms and glared at the boys.

"Well you're pure when it involves love."

"Pfft! Sister, you really don't know us well. To call us pure," Dee said through laughs.

"Well have you ever had sex?" I asked in a serious tone. That got the boys to quiet down.

"No," Dum answered.

"Have you ever masturbated?"

"…"

"…"

"No…" the boys responded warily.

"Good. Don't even try."

"So anyways, if you've never had sex then you're obviously still pure when it comes to love."

"I'm not sure that's how it works," Dee said as he sweat-dropped.

"Nonsense! Now listen to what I have to say."

"Hey sister!" Dum interrupted.

"What is it, Dum?"

"Have you ever masturbated?"

I froze in shock at the question.

"NO WAY!" I shouted as I grabbed a pillow and threw it at Dum.

"Sister, that hurt."

"I doubt it. Now listeeeen." After I was sure I got the boys' attention, I continued with the plan.

"Now we'll be doing this at the Amusement Park. I'll need to ask Gowland for a room there."

"Why's that?" Dee asked.

"Well I'll pretend that I want to spend the night at the Amusement Park and ask Gowland if he'll let me stay. I remember seeing a lot of rooms there the last time we went."

"But why are you pretendin' to stay there?"

"Well if he lets me stay, I'll get a key to a room. And I'll be the only one out of us four who has one," I said with confidence.

"Go on."

"So I'll tell Alice that I want to meet her at the room at a certain time period. Next, I'll give you boys the queue on when to head to that said area. You will go in there with Alice and act surprised while closing the door behind you. Then I'll lock it from the outside. And then you make your move by seducing her. And next…"

* * *

***CRASH***

I stared in fright as I stood dumbfounded, watching a chair fly out the window. Alice was in that room screaming at the top of her lungs, calling those poor boys perverts and molesters.

"I guess… my plan didn't work…" I said to myself feeling happy that I was outside where it was safe.

"But maybe there's a chance!"

"What in tarnation is goin' on? !" shouted Gowland as he headed towards the room of chaos.

Yeah, not going to work. I took that as my queue to leave. The farther away, the safer it was. I could only hope that Dee and Dum would forgive me later on. Come to think of it, I've done more bad than good for those boys.

Day suddenly changed to night as I found the entrance to the Amusement Park. It was probably best to stay there for now and wait for Alice and the twins to come by.

As I waited, someone decided it was a good idea to jump me from behind which caused me to shriek in fear.

"You sound cute when you're scared," said a familiar voice as he hugged me from behind.

"Hello Boris…" Did he really have to show up now? Of course since we were at the Amusement Park, chances of meeting him were high… unfortunately.

"You're so mean, Alex."

"And why's that?" I asked, not understanding what Boris meant.

"Ditching me at the maze to be with the clockmaker," he said while squeezing me tightly.

"I didn't ditch you to be with Julius. I went to go look for Alice," I argued.

"Don't lie to me. I saw you in his arms."

"Oh that… I wasn't feeling too well at that time, and I guess I fainted." I wasn't sure if it was just me, but the way Boris spoke felt strange.

"Is that so?"

"I'm telling the truth," I said, feeling irritated. The way he said that made it feel like he didn't believe me.

"Hmm. Well don't get too close to him. Someone like you doesn't belong with such a gloomy guy," the cat said while smirking.

"So I guess you're saying I'm better off with you," I said with a hint of sarcasm in my voice.

"I'm glad you finally figured that out. How about we go party?"

I was about to reject the offer until I felt a nibble on my ear. This caused my face to grow hot as my body became numb.

I flinched and jolted away from him, rubbing the ear he nibbled on.

"Don't do that!" I shouted while shaking.

"Woah, I didn't expect you to react that much. Could it be that your ears are one of your weak spots?"

"What does that even mean? !" I was getting really fed up with this cat.

"Oh? So you don't know?"

I remained silent, not sure of how to react.

"Well I could always teach you," Boris said as he closed the distance between us.

"Don't even think about it," I said while quickly backing away.

I noticed the evil grin on his face that sent a cold shiver down my spine. I had the sudden urge to high tail it out of there and run far, far away… very far away… Maybe I could learn Chinese? Wait, was there even a China in this world? That wouldn't make any sense… But nothing does in this Wonderland.

"Aww, you're never any fun. It was just a joke you know."

"Shut up. I hate cats anyways," I lied. I actually loved cats except for Boris, but any excuse would be good enough if it meant getting rid of him.

"Hate? !" Boris asked in surprise. "What's there to hate about us?"

"Everything. Now leave me be," I said while walking away from him.

Boris wasn't going to let it end here.

"Hold it. At least give me a chance."

Stopping in my tracks, I turned to face him, not feeling too pleased with this.

"What do you mean?"

"Well I saw what happened earlier. It looks like that "mission" of yours was a huge failure."

"Tell me something I don't know," I said while glaring at the cat.

"Listen, not to burst your bubble or anything, but I don't think any of your missions are gonna work. I mean you didn't start too long ago, and you managed to get Alice to trash an entire room and attack the twins."

"You know I'm not sure what irritates me more: What you just said or the fact that you can say all that with that happy-go-lucky smile plastered onto your face," I said as I crossed my arms.

"Now hold it, doll. Let me finish."

"I'm not a doll."

"I have an idea that'll get your plan to work. It's fail proof," Boris said, ignoring my last sentence.

"Oh really?" I raised a brow. Exactly what did this cat have in mind?

"Nya. But you're gonna have to cooperate with me," Boris said as he leaned closer.

I took a few steps back, completely in defense mode.

"Way to hurt, Alex."

"Whatever, just what do you mean by cooperate?"

"Well that's simple. Let me teach you about love and help you pair the twins with Alice."

"You?"

"Yeah. I obviously know a lot more about love than you do seeing how you've never experienced it before."

"Are you sure that what you know about is actually called love and not lust?" Boris did look like a playboy after all.

"Ouch. Trust me on this one. I'm a pro when it comes to romance," Boris said, brimming with confidence. Of course he himself had never been in love before, but he wasn't going to admit that.

"How do I know this isn't some kind of trap?"

"I'll give you my word as a Cheshire cat."

"…That's not enough…"

"Hmm really?"

Boris thought to himself, ear twitching cutely. I tried my best to ignore it.

"I got it! How about this?" the cat asked with a grin. "If I fail to help you get Alice and the twins together, then I'll leave you alone for good."

"R-really?" I asked in awe.

"You have my word."

Now this was a tempting deal. If Boris failed to help, I'd be rid of him forever.

"Deal," I said as we shook hands. "Now how are you going to teach me?"

"It's simple. I'll show you what to do, so that way you can get a feel of what's going on. Then all you have to do is put the plan into action."

"Show me how? Why not just tell?" Was he going to act it out or something? The thought of him acting it all out seemed kind of funny to me.

Boris chuckled a little, golden cat eyes glimmering.

"What's so funny?"

"Nothing. But before we begin, I'd like to share a riddle with you," Boris said mischievously.

"A riddle? Why?" I blinked in confusion.

"Just listen," Boris said as he closed the distance between us.

"If you want to lock the chest, you must first find the key. Can you guess what that means?"

"Yeah. I have some chest and can't lock it until I grab the key, right?"

"No, Alex. You're wrong."

"What do you mean wrong?"

"This is a riddle. Riddles hold more than one meaning. You need to figure out what the other meaning is."

"Ohh so it has nothing to do with an actual chest and key then?"

"Nya, that's right. Now since this is your first riddle, I'll give you another chance."

"Okay. Well then…" I thought long and hard to myself.

Boris looked like he was enjoying himself as he waited for a response.

After some time, I felt like my brain was going to explode.

"Argh! Boris, it could mean a lot of things!" I complained. There were just too many meanings, and I only got one chance? !

"Woah, chill. No need to stress, doll," Boris said while trying to calm me down.

"How about I'll just let this be your homework? Don't have to answer right away, just when you think you've figured it out."

"Ehh sure…" I wasn't too sure if I'd ever figure this one out. I never did pay any interest to riddles before.

Wait. Did he just call me doll again?

"FORGET IT!" shouted a familiar voice.

Boris and I turned to see Alice marching towards us from a distance with the twins close behind.

"Well how about your first lesson in three time changes? You can come meet me here," Boris said quickly.

"Sure, but I don't like walking through the forest alone."

"Oh really? Is that so?"

"Well then, how about I pick you up?" The cat was looking much too happy for comfort.

"Uhm sure," I said, not realizing what I was getting myself into.

"Nya, see you then. Don't forget," Boris said as he left.

"Was that Boris?" Alice asked as she walked up to me.

"Yeah," I said quickly while facing her.

"I see…" Alice then glared at me.

"And where were you?" she asked, arms crossed.

"H-huh?"

"You said you wanted to meet me then vanished. And you don't come back! Tell me what's going!" she demanded.

I had to admit, Alice could be pretty scary when angry.

"I-I got lost," I lied.

"Oh. Well maybe I should just keep you at my side at all hours from now on?"

I gulped at the sound of that.

"Please don't," I begged.

"We'll see," Alice said with a raised brow then marched right past me. "We're going home, Alex. Come!"

"Yes Alice…"

"Are you tryin' to get us killed?" asked a not too pleased Dee when Alice was out of earshot.

"I'm so sorry," I said to the boys. "But I know how to make it up."

"Really?"

"Yeah, another mission."

Dee and Dum didn't look too happy with the sound of that.

"Wait. I really, really, really thought carefully about this one. Please give me another chance?"

The boys exchanged glances then looked at me and nodded.

"One more chance," said Dum.

"But first a punishment game for failing us," said Dee with venom in his voice.

A cold shiver ran down my spine. I could sense the evil lurking within these boys. They were serious!

"Now we don't need that," I said while crying on the inside. "Just give me another chance, and I promise the next one will have good results."

"Of course we'll give you another chance, sister."

"But first the punishment game."

"Punishment games are no fun. Besides, we best hurry home."

Dee and Dum readied their axes which caused me to take a few steps back in fright.

"It's only the second mission. It's too early for payment," I said, still trying to persuade the boys to stop.

"Actually we think that payment is necessary," said Dee with an evil smile.

"An' we don't think it's fair that you should get away for the rock incident," added Dum.

"It was an accident!"

I suddenly froze.

Dee and Dum continued to smile.

"Y-you know…?"

The boys nodded.

"H-how?"

"Let's just say a role holder was nice enough to tell us," answered Dum.

"A role holder…?"

It couldn't be…

"Boris?

"Huh? What about Boris?" asked Dum as he and Dee raised their axes.

I spun around and took off running for dear life.

* * *

**Aaand cut! Sooo Dee and Dum find out about the rock incident on the first mission. What's going to happen to poor Alex?**


	10. 10: Dangling for Dear Life

**Hello lovely people! I'm back with a new chapter. ^^~**

**Again, sorry for the late update. This chapter ended up being really long. No joke… Sooo I decided to divide it, and make the rest of it chapter 11. *Had to make sure I split it at the right place* But yeah, shoulda posted this a few days ago sowwy.;;**

**Well you can all expect chapter 11 real soon. ^^~**

**austriantatious: LOL Yes they did, and we'll find out soon who told them. xP Boris is a HUGE perv in the manga, Cheshire Cat Waltz. And I'm not gonna go into details on what happened in the 4****th**** manga book. XD**

**Reaper . Death: Thank you so much! You're really kind. ^^~**

**And HAHAHA! I actually remember you disclaimer. :3**

**Disclaimer: I do not, never have, and sadly never will own Joker/Clover/Heart no kuni no Alice… T_T**

**Now on with the story!**

* * *

**-Chapter Ten-**

**-Dangling for Dear Life-**

* * *

"Now listen boys. Let's not be too hasty and just think about this for a moment."

"But we already thought about it," said Dee as he pulled out a throwing knife.

"An' it's decided that you'll act as our piñata," added Dum.

"Now hold it!"

"What now?" asked Dee.

He looked like he was getting irritated from all my complaining. Of course, why the heck wouldn't I complain? !

"Why use a living piñata? I-I mean, you guys should get one with candy inside. You love candy, right?"

"Hmm we do. But living piñatas scream. Makes things much more fun," Dum answered.

Oh gawd, I'm going to die!

"Now hold still, sister," Dee said as he readied his knife.

"WAAAIIIT! ! !" I shouted, stopping Dee from throwing the blade.

"What now? !" asked the displeased boys. They wanted to have their "fun" now.

"Wouldn't you rather use a bat? I mean throwing knives at a piñata kind of ruins the game, don't you think?" I asked while sweat-dropping.

"Why?"

Dee's glare made me want to crawl in a hole and hide. If only I weren't tied upside down in a tree.

"Bat… whacks… piñatas," I said in a squeaky voice.

I was terribly afraid at this point. Dee looked like he really wanted me to pay the price, but Dum looked as though just the thought of killing someone was enough to satisfy him.

"She's right, brother," Dum said with a smile. "It's only natural to attack the piñata with a bat."

"Ahh but we don't have a bat."

"An' that's a problem."

"Should we use a large stick, brother?"

"We'd take forever to kill her, brother."

"I don't see what's wrong with the throwing knife," Dee said as he looked at his precious weapon.

"An' finding a bat would take forever. Poor sister would be tired from waiting," said Dum as he looked at me with sparkling eyes.

This was it. I was going to be murdered. These little devils would probably hide my corpse afterwards, and nobody would ever know.

"So what do you think, sister?" asked Dee.

Ahh but wait… Maybe if I told them that Alice would hate them, they'd stop?

"Sister?"

"She's not answering, brother."

I looked at the boys, wanting to tell them.

***Silence***

Tell them.

"Maybe she doesn't mind the knife after all," said Dee as he sighed.

Tell them.

"An' she's quiet, brother."

TELL THEM YOU STUPID IDIOT!

My brow twitched as I opened my mouth to speak.

***Silence***

"…"

"Let's get this over with," Dee said as he readied his blade.

My mind became such a mess as death awaited me.

The first knife Dee threw at me flew past the right side of my waist, barely missing me by an inch. My body froze in pure terror.

Why was it that the more terrified I was, the harder it was to get a word out? !

"Do it again!" Dum said excitedly as the boys laughed.

This time Dee threw the knife at my head, missing me by half an inch.

"Aww you didn't strike her, brother. My turn!" said Dum as the boys looked like they were having the time of their lives.

I could feel myself becoming woozy. This wasn't exactly how I wanted to die. It'd be nice to maybe, I don't know, be able to grow old and pass away in a warm bed?

'_Today's the day of the coronation. You don't want to miss your big day, now do you?'_

Uncle Aswal?

Exactly why am I remembering that now?

I mean I read in books before that your life flashes before you when you're about to die, but that's the only thing I'm remembering now? !

And the day of the coronation? Wasn't that the day I dropped into this strange world?

'_Today is your big day, Alex. It's the day Aura will be cured, and all will finally be well.'_

Right, the day that Aura would be saved…

I stiffened as another blade came flying towards me and barely missed.

Wait a second.

'_You don't want to miss your big day, now do you?'_

My big day?

Wasn't it supposed to be Aura's big moment, since the cure was meant for her?

* * *

'_Once Aura is cured, all will be well.'_

'_How will she be cured, Uncle?' I asked with curious eyes._

'_It's quite simple.'_

_Three men appeared from behind me as Uncle Aswal smiled._

'_Uncle Aswal?'_

_I became frightened as one of the men grabbed me firmly from behind. Their faces were masked, and they wore black cloaks._

'_Uncle Aswal?' I called out as the men dragged me away._

'_You should cherish this day, Alex. For it will be your last.'_

'_What do you mean? !'_

'_We are all proud of you.'_

* * *

My eyes widened in fear as realization dawned upon me.

I could remember being forced on my knees in the center of a large, candlelit room that was underground. Uncle Aswal and Aura stood side by side before me.

When did all of this happen? How? Since I came to this world, what in the world was that memory?

Other questions started to pop into my mind as I hung completely oblivious to the warm liquid that trickled from my mouth.

The voices that called out to me were ignored.

When did I become partially blind in my left eye?

What was that drink that Aura tried to give me?

Why were parts of my past missing?

'_Nobody would discriminate you if you stayed in Wonderland. You wouldn't be treated poorly since everyone loves outsiders.'_

Nightmare…

My mind suddenly became blank as I fell into a slumber.

* * *

"…ter…"

"…ister…"

Someone's calling me?

"…wake up!"

Who?

"Sister!"

Dum?

"Wake up, sister."

Dee?

I wearily opened my heavy eyes to see Dee and Dum staring down at me with worried expressions.

I tried to speak, but words failed to escape my lips.

The boys sighed in relief to see me finally awake.

As my vision became more focused, I noticed that I was no longer in the forest but in my own room within the Hatter Mansion.

"Sister, are you okay?" Dum asked.

As much as I wanted to respond, it was just impossible at that point. Why I couldn't speak was beyond my understanding. What was really strange was the fact that my body felt so weak. Why was that?

"Alex," Alice said as she rushed to my side.

Was I seriously injured or something?

But how was I- Oh right… The twins decided to use me as a piñata. Exactly how much damage did they do? And exactly why did they look so worried when they were most likely the reason I was in this state?

"Alex, I need to know. Are you sick with something?" Alice asked with worry in her eyes.

I looked at Alice, feeling confused.

What did she mean by sick?

Did they find out about my marks?

"If you can't speak, then please nod your head or something."

If they saw the marks, they'd probably want an explanation. I nodded my head wearily.

"I knew it… Alex, how serious is it? Nod if it's serious, and shake if it isn't."

I didn't have time for something like this. There were more important things to do like figuring out what the heck these memories were about.

I simply closed my eyes and turned my head to the side.

"Big Sis, what's wrong with her?" Dum asked.

"I don't know, but she needs a doctor."

A doctor? How would a doctor help?

"Will she be alright?" asked Dee.

"I don't know, Dee. Boys, please stay with her," Alice said as she turned to leave the room.

"Elliot! Come here, please," Alice called out as the footsteps became fainter.

I suddenly felt warmth wrap itself around my body. I opened my eyes to see Dee and Dum hugging me with tears in their eyes.

"Sister, we're sorry," Dee said.

"Yeah, we didn't know scaring you would make you sick."

Scaring me?

Weren't they-

"We only wanted to teach you a lesson. We were never gonna hurt you."

Oh.

So they weren't going to kill me after all.

Realizing that made me feel somewhat relieved.

"Sister, don't die," Dum cried.

"We'll do anything. So don't leave us."

Don't leave us? Hearing those words come from Dee was a real shock. Didn't he dislike me?

'_I hate you, Alex!'_

Aura…

Tears started to fall from my eyes. It was becoming difficult to breathe.

"What's wrong?" Dee asked, not sure what to do.

Everyone hates me. So please don't act like you care.

Alice and Elliot hurried into the room.

"Thank you, Elliot."

"No problem. Let's get her out of here."

"Don't do anything stupid, chicken rabbit," the twins warned as a pair of strong arms lifted me from the bed.

"Chicken rabbit? ! You damn brats!"

"Hey! This is not the time. Get her to a hospital now!" Alice commanded.

"Dammit, let's go."

"Don't drop her, chicken rabbit!"

"I'm not going to drop her you damn brats!"

"Stop fighting!"

***SLAM***

"A-Alex? !"

"STUPID CHICKEN RABBIT! ! !" Dee shouted in anger.

"Yeah, you slammed her head against the wall," said Dum as he pointed his axe at Elliot.

"It was an accident. It's because you brats kept yelling at me!"

"Oh my god Elliot, she's bleeding," Alice said while panicking.

"Stuuupid!"

"Let us hold her."

"I'm not letting you fXXXXXX hold her! You'll drop her."

"We won't aXXXXXX!"

"An' we're not letting you carry her. You'll kill her before we even make it to the hospital!"

"Will you please stop fighting and just get moving?" Alice asked, ready to snap at any moment.

"Yeah! Give her to us, and let's go!" demanded Dee.

"Like hell I will."

"She really will die if you idiots don't move it."

***Bite***

***Pause***

Elliot screamed in pain as he dropped me on the floor.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU DROP HER, CHICKEN RABBIT? ! ? !"

Alice quickly got in between the twins and Elliot to prevent them from trying to kill him.

"S-she bit me! Of course I'd drop her," Elliot said as he looked at his bleeding hand.

I stayed on the floor, completely furious with these morons. If I had the energy to move and speak, I'd make them all suffer.

"Enough of this! What's the matter with you people?"

"My what a ruckus. What seems to be the problem, dear Alice?" asked Blood as he walked towards the idiots.

"Alex. Hospital. Now," Alice said as she waved her arms up and down.

That was a lovely explanation Alice…

"My, she does seem to be in a rather bad state. Elliot, grab her, and let's be on our way," Blood said in that non-caring attitude of his.

I was so upset at this point, I was ready to explode.

Whenever I get better, I would make sure that these morons all paid.

* * *

**Haaah poor Alex getting bonked on the noggin when she's already down. XD**

**Anyways the next chapter will be up quickly this time. ^^~**

**Thank you all for reading! Please review if you can.**


	11. 11: Questions

**Hello lovely people! Chapter 11 is here~. I know I said I'd update soon, but then I decided that I should just stick to a week. And I had 2 different ways I wanted this chapter to go, so it took me some time and a ton of editing before I made the final decision on which path to take. lol!**

**And this was supposed to be posted yesterday, but then I fell asleep… boo. boo.**

**Ahh well thank you so much for the lovely reviews! They make me very happy!**

**austriantatious: lol Things will become more clear as Alex remembers more. ^^~**

**Reaper . death: What Aswal tried to do to Alex will be revealed soon! *evil laughter***

**Rafanan: LOL I actually didn't even think about their names all beginning with A until after posting the first chapter. I was like why on earth did I do that? But still works. XD And yes, why can't Wonderland be real? That'd be so amazing if it was. x3 Thank you very much!**

**Disclaimer: I do not, have not, and will not ever own Joker/Clover/Heart no Kuni no Alice.**

**Now on with the chapter. *hearts***

* * *

**- CHAPTER ELEVEN -**

**- QUESTIONS -**

* * *

"NIGHTMARE!" I shouted in anger. "Show yourself now!"

"Calm down, Alex," Nightmare said gently as he appeared before me.

"Don't tell me to calm down. You tell me what's going on this instant," I demanded.

"And what am I supposed to tell you? Your mind's a mess."

"What's with these memories? I have a feeling you know."

"Oh? And what makes you think that?" the incubus asked with a smile.

I crossed my arms in frustration.

"When we last spoke, you said some things that make me believe you know something about my past. Something I apparently don't know. I want to know what that is."

The incubus stayed silent, floating above while recollecting his thoughts. He then smiled and looked at me, causing me to feel a little insecure.

"Alex. There are things that we all want to know about, but some are best left forgotten."

"What do you mean?" I asked, not understanding what this darn incubus meant.

Nightmare floated closer towards me.

"What I mean is that sometimes forgetting is the only way to keep you safe and alive," he said as he caressed my cheek.

Nightmare was being… strange. What exactly happened to his crybaby attitude?

"Do you mind showing some respect?" Nightmare asked while twitching his brow.

"How about you just stay out of my head?" I asked, glaring at him.

The incubus sighed then chuckled.

"Alex dear. Do you really want to remember that badly?"

"Of course I do!"

"Even if it means you'll lose everything in the end?"

I paused for a moment, not exactly sure how to respond to that. Was there really anything for me to lose besides Aura?

"You wouldn't exactly be the one who loses her," Nightmare said while reading my thoughts.

"Then yes, I want to remember," I said with a determined look.

Nightmare looked displeased with my response.

"Then I have no choice but to make you play the game," he said, a gentle smile suddenly appearing on his face.

"A game? Why a game?" I asked while calming down.

"Because participating in this game will hopefully lead you in the right direction," Nightmare answered as he pulled a vial out from his pocket.

"You have a vial?" I asked in surprise.

I thought that only outsiders were supposed to need them.

"Well this vial does belong to you."

"What? It's mine?"

Nightmare nodded in response.

"Then I can go home."

"Wait. Don't you want your memories back?"

"Huh?" I asked, still confused.

"Drink the vial and play the game. If you do that, then you will get what you desire most."

"Is that so?" I asked while looking at the purple vial in the incubus' hand.

"Here," Nightmare said while tossing it at me.

I caught and examined the item with interest.

"Playing the game is easy. All you have to do is interact with people. Once the vial becomes full again, you decide on whether or not you want to return home. The decision is all yours in the end."

"And if I do this, you promise me that I'll remember everything?"

"Yes. But that's only if you choose to go back."

I could easily go home now, but I wasn't sure if my memories would return with this decision. So the best course of action would probably be to play the game.

I opened the vial and took a sip.

"…"

"EWW! Oh wow! This tastes horrible," I said in disgust.

"Quit complaining and drink it."

"Says the crybaby who refuses to go to a doctor!"

"I'm not a crybaby!"

"Ugh, no you're worse."

You're a crybaby and a stinking rapist.

"DON'T CALL ME A RACIST!"

"Stop reading my mind!"

***Spits out blood***

"You have to stop doing that," I said while taking a few steps back in disgust.

"It's not like I choose to be this way…" Nightmare said weakly.

Says the idiot who refuses to see a doctor.

***Coughs up more blood***

***Sweatdrops***

"S-so… c…cruel…" Nightmare spoke as he fell.

I stared at the possibly dying incubus, not sure of what to do at this point. It would be natural to help a person in this situation, but for some reason I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

I decided to finish drinking the horrible tasting contents, forcing it down with all my might.

"Happy?" I asked, hoping this stuff wouldn't make me puke later on.

"Y…yes," Nightmare answered with a tear in his eye.

"Hey. Do yourself a favor, and go see a doctor," I said then sighed.

"Never... And I want you to remember that there are things best left forgotten. You will always be forgiven. Now it's time to wake up."

* * *

**-3RD POV-**

* * *

"What do you mean there's nothing wrong with her?" Alice asked the doctor in frustration.

"I'm sorry, but I can't find anything wrong. We've put her through tests, and she seems perfectly fine," said the faceless doctor.

"But she's not fine. She was pale. And- and was barely breathing."

"Are you sure she didn't just faint?"

"There's no way. She was coughing up blood."

"I see," the doctor said with a frown.

"I can assure you that the young lady is ill with something," said Blood as he stood beside Alice.

"W-well we could draw blood and run some diagnostics. Though it will take some time to see what we come up with."

"Then be on your way. If I were you, I would be wise enough to find the problem quickly," the mad hatter said with a dangerous smile.

"Y-yes… Of course," the doctor responded nervously then took off.

"Are you alright, Alice?" Blood asked as he looked at the worried girl.

"Yeah. I just wish I knew what was wrong with Alex. And I hope we can save her…"

"Don't worry your pretty little head. Alex will be alright," the hatter said with a reassuring smile.

"I hope so."

* * *

**-1ST POV-**

* * *

After waking up, I couldn't help but notice two boys sleeping with their heads rested at the foot of the bed. I looked at the empty vial in my right hand. I wasn't even going to try to figure out how it transferred from a dream to here…

So the only way to finish the game was to talk to people, huh? That didn't sound so hard.

A thought suddenly came to me.

Exactly why did Nightmare have my vial?

"…"

THAT JERK! Always leaving me with questions! I would remember to torture him the next time we meet.

My attention then reverted back to the boys.

They looked so cute when sleeping.

But why were they here?

They really should have spent their time comforting Alice. It would have been a good opportunity for them.

"…"

"Dee? Dum?" I asked quietly.

Still asleep.

I sighed as I moved my hand towards Dee's head and bonked it with all my might. This would be just a little bit of revenge for throwing knives at me.

"Ouch!"

"Wake up."

The boys opened their eyes and sat up. Dum yawned and rubbed his eyes while poor Dee rubbed the back of his head, glaring at me.

"Sister!" Dum shouted as he tackled and embraced me. Dee decided he'd get revenge later and hugged me as well.

"Could you boys please let me breathe?" I asked, not liking the closeness between us.

"No way. We're sticking to you," said Dum.

"Honestly, what are you two doing?" I asked while feeling irritated.

"What do you mean?" asked a confused Dee.

"Alice should be in a weak state right about now. You know how caring that girl is. You should have used this as an opportunity to grow closer to her."

The boys looked at each other then back at me.

"Hm~."

"Hm~."

"W-what?"

"She's right, brother. We missed our chance."

"An' it was a good chance too."

"Sheesh, I can't believe you boys didn't think of this."

"Well it was 'cause sister's in so much pain," said Dum.

I raised a brow.

"You didn't do anything because of me?" I asked in disbelief.

"Duh. We can't abandon you when you're suffering," Dee said with an isn't that obvious look on his face.

"So that means… That… That means…"

The boys gave me questioning looks.

"I ruined everything," I said as I paled.

"Sister is an idiot," Dee said, feeling irritated.

"Agreed, brother."

***Twitch***

"INSTEAD OF CALLING ME AN IDIOT, WHY DON'T YOU BOYS JUST GO AND GIVE YOUR BIG SIS SOME LOVING ATTENTION? !"

Calling me an idiot for a simple mistake… These brats! They have no right to call me that for all the help I've been trying to give them!

"We want to give Big Sis a lot of attention, but we also don't want sister to die while we're at it," said Dee with a deadly smile that sent chills down my spine.

"I won't die! I'm healthy. Now go."

The boys sighed as they sat back.

"So sister's healthy now?"

"Y-yeah."

"An' you won't die if we leave?"

"I highly doubt it."

"Then we're off to woo Big Sis."

The twins suddenly did something very unexpected. They both kissed me on the cheeks, causing my eyes to widen as a slight blush crept onto my face.

"Thank you, sister."

"We'll tell you our results."

I watched as the two happily rushed away to find their dear Alice.

For a second there, I actually felt like my heart skipped a beat. It could have just been my imagination though. I was feeling a little nauseous after all. Some more sleep just might be the cure.

As I laid down, I couldn't help but feel a tiny bit of guilt build up inside of me.

Was I forgetting something?

If so, then what?

What? What? What is it- oh…

"I better prepare an explanation for Boris. I wonder if he'll-"

I was stopped short as someone came crashing through the window.

* * *

**And that's the end of chapter 11. So now we know who had Alex's vial. And it looks like she's finally in the game. x3**

**Next chapter to come next week~~~.**


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